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Thursday, April 23, 2026
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US considering virus aid to India, says Biden’s top medical advisor Fauci

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The Commune
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Anthony Fauci

The Biden administration’s top medical adviser on the Covid-19 pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday said that the US is actively looking at ways to boost aid to India as it grapples with the surging coronavirus cases.

Dr.Fauci told ABC’s “This Week” show that several measures were being considered, including sending over oxygen supplies, COVID-19 test kits, drug treatments and personal protective equipment.

The outbreak in India adds to the pressure on US President Joe Biden to provide vaccines and aid to other countries. Biden has said that the US won’t begin doing so until it has enough supplies at home.

Fauci said Sunday that the US would review how to help increase India”s vaccine supply, such as by sending them doses or helping them “to essentially make vaccines themselves.”

He said, “Bottom line, it’s a terrible situation that’s going on in India and other lower middle-income countries, and there is more we can do.”

Earlier, Serum Institute of  India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla had taken to Twitter on April 16 and requested United States President Joe Biden to lift the embargo of raw material exports from the US. Appealing to POTUS on behalf of the vaccine industry apart from the US, Poonawalla had said that by lifting the embargo, the vaccine production amid the COVID-19 pandemic could be “ramp[ed] up”. The SII CEO had also said that the Biden administration already has the details required to make the move which can contribute to better the situation amid the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic which has rocked several nations, months after it first began.

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Putting into context the rise of the BJP in Kerala

By
The Commune
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Kerala BJP

May 2, the counting day for the polls to the legislative assemblies of Kerala, West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, is around the corner. Among these states, the results of the Kerala polls will be a good indicator of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) success – or lack thereof – in the southern part of India. While Hindutva politics has long resonated with the people of Karnataka, the saffron party’s rhetoric has not translated into electoral victories in the other states south of the Godavari, where regional and Communist parties have ruled the roost for decades, other than the Congress of course.

Pushing through in a tough political landscape as Kerala is not easy, but the BJP is well on its way to do so. While the party has won only one Assembly seat in the state in the past, one little-observed event tells us that the BJP is making headway in Kerala.

In a referendum at the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) held a few months ago, the BJP-affiliated Bharat Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) won enough votes to get recognised for the first time.

Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) connected with the Communist Party of India – Marxist (CPM), lost about ten per cent of its vote share but still managed to retain its decades-old influence. The Congress-affiliated Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) too retained its second spot.

The referendum presents the CPM with a sore question. The CPM-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) has always maintained that there isn’t an anti-incumbency factor in Kerala. But how else would one explain the fact that employees of Kerala’s largest public sector undertaking voted against the incumbent party? It was clear from the referendum that the BMS had eaten into the vote share of the CITU.

In the 2016 Kerala state polls, the BJP had vexed the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) the same way. Of the seven constituencies, where the BJP finished as a runner-up, only four of those seats were won by the UDF while the LDF won the remaining three. In other seats where the BJP significantly increased its vote share, the UDF had lost. Constituencies where the BJP had earlier only garnered 5,000-10,000 votes were now awarding the BJP with 10,000-15,000 votes. These votes going to the BJP were the UDF’s loss.

This phenomenon is repeating this time around as well. However, it is not only the UDF but the LDF as well that is losing votes, as viewed in the context of the recent KSRTC referendum.

Signs pointing to this trend were also visible in the 2020 local body elections in Kerala, where the BJP made substantial advances. In the Kodungallur municipality, the BJP secured 20 wards and the CPM only 11. In Mavelikkara municipality, both parties scored the same number of seats. The BJP also made significant inroads into the LDF bastions of Kilimanur and Attingal in Thiruvananthapuram district.

The LDF is confronted with the uncomfortable truth that its support base has eroded in favour of the BJP.

With the 15 assembly constituencies where the BJP won at least 25 per cent of the votes in 2016 and ten of the forty potential swing constituencies where the party has found favour with the voters, there is a strong case for the BJP wielding a decisive influence in the next Kerala assembly.

This will inevitably show when the results are announced on May 2.

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First look of actor Karthi’s new movie shows J&K as part of Pakistan

By
The Commune
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In a case of blatant disregard for the territorial integrity of India, the motion poster of actor Karthi’s next film has shown Jammu and Kashmir as part of Pakistan.

Following the release of Sulthan, actor Karthi is teaming up with ‘Irumbu Thirai’ fame director P.S. Mithran for his next movie titled ‘Sardar’. The film which also stars Raashi Khanna as the heroine is being produced by Prince Pictures which was also the banner behind Dev (actor Karthi’s earlier flop venture), actor Surya’s Singam 2 and Trisha’s Mohini.

On April 25, actor Karthi took to his official Twitter handle to release the film’s motion poster. At 0:18, the makers of the film show a portion of Jammu and Kashmir (Gilgit Baltistan) as part of Pakistan.

According to the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1961 whoever publishes a map of India, which is not in conformity with the maps of India as published by the Survey of India, shall be punishable with imprisonment which may be extend to six months, or with fine, or both.

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Door of Sriperumbudhur’s Sundara Varadaraja Perumal Temple at risk of collapse due to HR&CE’s negligence

By
The Commune
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The Sundara Varatharaja Perumal temple near Sriperumbudur in Kanchipuram district is a century old temple. The temple is under the control of the Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department. Due to the negligence of HR&CE officials, the door of the entrance in this temple is in danger of breaking at any time. This wooden door, which is close to a state of collapse, is propped up with a mere rock to protect the it from falling down.

For the last two years, the people of the area have been requesting the temple executive officer to repair the door, but the authorities have been reluctant. Devotees who come to this temple come to the temple in fear as the door of the temple may collapse at any moment.

Public in the area have demanded that the temple authorities immediately carry out reconstruction work to prevent any untoward incident to the devotees coming to the temple.

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Inseparable even in death, man dies moments after his wife’s death

By
The Commune
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Thiruvenkadam (80) hails from Vellalar Street, Ammanpettai, near Thiruvaiyaru in Thanjavur district. His wife Amsavalli who was aged 78 passed away recently. The husband and wife lived as a married couple for close to five decades, and have 5 sons.

Amsavalli passed away on Friday evening due to old age and physical ailment. Her husband Thiruvenkadam, who was in grief, was crying and mourning the death of his wife. When his sons realised that their father’s crying had stopped after a while, they had gone to check on him. While doing so, it was revealed that he too had died.

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6 foot long snake found amidst bags of cement in Erode

By
The Commune
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A lot of new apartment complexes have sprouted up in the Senadipalayam area next to Erode. Construction is underway on a new home there. For this purpose, a temporary hut was set up to store cement bundles.

Construction workers had gone to the hut on Friday to pick up the cement bundles that were inside. While doing so, they found a snake that was lurking amidst the bags. When the workers saw this, they screamed and fled the scene.

Following this, the snake catcher Yuvraj was informed. Yuvraj, a snake catcher, rushed to the spot and caught a 6-foot-long cobra lurking in the middle of cement bundles. The snake-catcher caught the 6-foot-long cobra alive and handed it over to the forest department as it entered a room where construction materials were stored. The captured snake was then handed over to the forest department. This caused a stir in the area for quite some time.

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Tamil Nadu government sets up oxygen shortage helpline

By
The Commune
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In the recent standard procedures to be followed that were released by the Tamil Nadu state government, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami also released a helpline number for reporting oxygen shortage. This number, 104, will connect to a 24*7 helpline, which will resolve issues faced by hospitals over oxygen shortage.

“In order to resolve any issues related to medical oxygen supply faced by hospitals, nursing homes, the government has established a 247 call centre under the State Drug Controller. Hospitals, nursing homes in Tamil Nadu facing any shortage of medical oxygen may immediately call 104 for assistance,” the release said. Since a lot of cases have been reported so far in terms of oxygen shortage all over the country, this initiative of the Tamil Nadu government was welcomed by the public.

In addition to this, the CM also asked industries that are currently producing oxygen to look for ways to increase their production to meet the demand and not look to make a profit in times of crisis like this.

There are currently close to 1 lakh cases in Tamil Nadu and around 13, 775 fresh infections were reported on Friday, with Chennai being reported at 3,000 cases.

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Indonesia confirms its submarine KRI Nanggala 402 has sunk, crew of 53 lost at sea

By
The Commune
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Indonesian navy on Saturday (24 April) has confirmed that their missing submarine KRI Nanggala 402 has sunk killing 53 crew members aboard.

The rescue ships had spotted the presence of an oil slick as well as debris near the submarine’s last dive on Wednesday (21 April) off the island of Bali. Several pieces and parts from inside the sub have been recovered. 

Navy Chief Yudo Margono told a press conference in Bali, “If it’s an explosion, it will be in pieces. The cracks happened gradually in some parts when it went down from 300 meters to 400 meters to 500 meters … If there was an explosion, it would be heard by the sonar.”

As per the Indonesian Navy, what likely transpired was the submarine sank to a depth of 600-700 meters (2,000-2,300 feet) when the maximum it could dive was only 200 meters (655 feet), i.e. crush depth. 

The hulls of a submarine are designed to withstand a certain level of water pressure when it dives, however, when a submarine dives below its capacity, the water pressure would be greater than the hull could withstand leading to cracks and eventual implosion.

The KRI Nanggala 402 was a German-designed diesel-powered submarine and it has been in the service of the Indonesian Navy since 1981.

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“Even if 1000 people die, we won’t let Sterlite open”, VCK leader Thol. Thirumavalavan says

By
The Commune
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At a time when the number of COVID cases has been rising across the state and the country with oxygen coming under high demand, VCK chief Thol. Thirumavalavan has issued a clarion call instigating people to create social unrest in the state.

On Friday, the Supreme Court of India had accepted for urgent hearing of the offer from Vedanta to produce and supply 1000 tons of medical oxygen per day from its sealed Sterlite Copper plant in Thoothukudi. The Central Government on its part told the Supreme Court that Sterlite Copper Factory can be opened to produce medical oxygen to meet the oxygen demand.

However, the Thoothukudi Collector hurriedly organized a public hearing in Thoothukudi to gauge public opinions on the offer of support from Vedanta. During the hearing, those in favour of opening the factory and the anti-Sterlite group engaged in a clash with the Collector ultimately passing a resolution against opening the factory based on ‘majority opinion’.

On the same day (April 23), VCK chief Thol. Thirumavalavan said in a tweet that the Modi government must abandon efforts to open Sterlite ‘in the guise of manufacturing’. He further went on to instigate people saying that ‘Even if 1000 of us die, we won’t let Sterlite open’ should be the battle cry.

His tweet has come under severe condemnation from netizens of being insensitive and playing politics at a crucial time.

https://twitter.com/DAmbedkardasan/status/1385849832313589760

https://twitter.com/nithish1223943/status/1385812144130719745

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Man who stole temple idols sentenced to 10 years imprisonment

By
The Commune
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A Salem court in Tamil Nadu has sentenced one Santhosh Das to 10 years imprisonment for stealing precious idols from the Jain Kashi Siddhantha Mandira located in Moodbidri.

The incident took place on July 6, 2013, when the accused stole 15 gold and diamond-studded idols from the shrine in Moodbidri. Also, during the investigation, it emerged that Das had participated in more than 40 other temple thefts.  

“I am happy about the verdict. He should get life imprisonment. Because, even after he was out on bail he continued to indulge in many theft cases, irrespective of the religious centres. The government of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka should consider this as a special case, and the accused should be brought to Karnataka. As of now, officials of the police department are citing technical problem. He is a habitual offender, hence, the government should take his crime as a serious offence.” Sri Sri Swasthisri Charukeerthi Bhattaraka Pandithacharayavariya Swamiji of Jain Math, Moodbidri was quoted saying in a report. 

The idols were sculpted in the 10th century and were worth crores of rupees. The burglary was reportedly planned and executed as the CCTV cameras of the temple were destroyed by the accused.

The temple housed 52 priceless antiques inside a glass enclosure called Siddhanta Mandira. Investigation revealed that none of the security staff was near the CCTV monitor during the theft.

However, the police were able to get their hands on one CCTV footage when it emerged that only one person wearing a mask entered the room and stole the idols. The accused used a gas cutter to gain entry but surprisingly even with that much noise Das managed to escape successfully with the idols but had left behind the gas cutter and a portable cylinder.  

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TheCommune
The Commune is a news and views portal focusing on social and political issues of the southern part of India with a focus on Tamil Nadu.
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