Quoting a few of lines from the poem ‘Murasu’ written by Tamil poet Subramania Bharathi, veteran actor Sivakumar came down heavily on people who were still holding on to their caste identities in Tamil Nadu.

Inaugurating the Kovai Medical Centre and Hospital (KMCH) at Sulur on Sunday, Sivakumar said: “Bharathi had rightly said in the poem that despite having different colours, all cats are born of a single mother. Likewise, people should know that we are all the same despite our differences, and should stop boasting of our castes.”

Talking about the impact of his teachers on his life, when he was a student at Sulur, Sivakumar opined that it their teaching and the influence of the soil of Sulur that had made him the person he is now.

“My teachers taught me about the hardships people faced during the freedom fight and the history of our freedom struggle. These teachings imparted patriotism in us, which also made us work hard to come up in life,” he added.

Earlier, Sunil Kumar, Air Commodore of Sulur Air Base, said that the arrival of the hospital to Sulur will contribute to the area’s growth.

According to a release from the organisers, the Rs.20 crore hospital is a 100-bed multispecialty hospital which will provide general treatment along with specialized treatments in cardiology; orthopedic and joint replacement surgery; neurology and neurosurgery; general surgery; plastic and cosmetic surgery; urology; pulmonology; ENT; obstetrics and gynaecology; paediatrics, and dental and facio-maxillary surgeries.