Suriya & Karthi donate 1cr to Tamil Nadu CM's COVID relief fund following Stalin's appeal

Actor Suriya, Karthi and veteran actor and father Sivakumar are the latest to join the list of Tamil film industry personalities who have met the state's chief minister MK Stalin, to greet him on the emphatic win in the recently concluded Tamil Nadu Elections. The actors on the occasion of their meeting, also donated a sum of one crore towards the Government of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund to fight against the second COVID-19 wave. 2D Entertainment Chief Rajsekar Pandian was also seen with the actors when they met the CM on Wednesday evening, May 12.

Following the audience with CM MK Stalin, Sivakumar addressed a press briefing outside where he stated that he had made a request to the CM to provide employment opportunities to those who have earned degrees in Tamil. He added in his statement to the media that he had personally known former CM M Karunanidhi for almost four decades prior to his death and now seeing his so take the seat today as the State's CM made him happy.

Last week the veteran actor released a 2-minute video where he was seen requesting the government to look after the overall welfare of people in Tamil Nadu, with a primary focus on basic necessities required in hospitals and other public health centres to combat the rampant COVID-19 surge in the State.

Other notable figures who have contributed to CM fund

Following the appeal made by MK Stalin to donate generously to the State government's relief fund, donations have started pouring in from all quarters, with educational institutions, in particular, taking up the mantle, so far:

• Ekki Pumps and Viessman Joint Venture has donated 1 crore
• Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, belonging  to the Jeppaiar group has donated 50 lakhs
•  Panimalar Group of Educational Institutions has stepped in with Rs 50 lakh
• Annapoorna Medical College and Hospitals and Jeyachandran Textiles have donated Rs 25 lakhs each

COVID Cases In India 

After recording over four lakh fresh cases for four consecutive days, India witnessed a single-day rise of 3,62,727 COVID-19 cases on Thursday, which pushed the overall tally to 2,37,03,665, according to the Ministry of Health & Family Affairs.

The death toll due to the viral disease climbed to 2,58,317 with 4,120 more people succumbing to the virus. The number of active cases of the coronavirus infection in the country has gone up to 37,10,525, up by over 6,000 cases, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 82.39 per cent.