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PM CARES Fund

2021 SEP 24

Preliminary   > Disaster Management   >   Miscellaneous   >   COVID 19

Why in news?

  • Prime minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situation Fund (PM-CARES Fund), a charitable trust under the law, has told Delhi High Court that the trust’s fund is not a fund of the Government of India and its amount does not go in the Consolidated Fund of India.

More about the news:

  • The submission was made in response to a petition seeking that PM-CARES Fund be declared as ‘the State’ under Article 12 of the Constitution.

About PM CARES Fund:

  • Keeping in mind the need for having a dedicated fund with the primary objective of dealing with any kind of emergency or distress situation, like posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and to provide relief to the affected, a public charitable trust under the name of ‘Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund)’ has been set up.
  • PM CARES Fund has been registered as a Public Charitable Trust.
  • The trust deed of PM CARES Fund has been registered under the Registration Act, 1908 on 27th March, 2020.

Objectives:

  • To undertake and support relief or assistance of any kind relating to a public health emergency or any other kind of emergency, calamity or distress, either man-made or natural, including the creation or upgradation of healthcare or pharmaceutical facilities, other necessary infrastructure, funding relevant research or any other type of support.
  • To render financial assistance, provide grants of payments of money or take such other steps as may be deemed necessary by the Board of Trustees to the affected population.

Constitution of the Trust :

  • Prime Minister is the ex-officio Chairman of the PM CARES Fund and Minister of Defence, Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of Finance, Government of India are ex-officio Trustees of the Fund.
  • The Chairperson of the Board of Trustees (Prime Minister) shall have the power to nominate three trustees to the Board of Trustees who shall be eminent persons in the field of research, health, science, social work, law, public administration and philanthropy.
  • Any person appointed a Trustee shall act in a pro bono capacity.

Other details:

  • The fund consists entirely of voluntary contributions from individuals/organizations and does not get any budgetary support. The fund will be utilised in meeting the objectives as stated above.
  • Donations to PM CARES Fund would qualify for 80G benefits for 100% exemption under the Income Tax Act, 1961.
  • Donations to PM CARES Fund will also qualify to be counted as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expenditure under the Companies Act, 2013
  • PM CARES Fund has also got exemption under the FCRA and a separate account for receiving foreign donations has been opened.
  • This enables PM CARES Fund to accept donations and contributions from individuals and organizations based in foreign countries.
  • The minimum donation accepted for the PM CARES Fund is Rs.10.
  • The government stated that "independent auditors who will be appointed by the trustees" would audit the fund. Thus, CAG’s office is expected to have no role in the audit of the fund.

PRACTICE QUESTION:

Consider the following statements regarding ‘Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund’:

1. Union Finance Minister is the chairman of the Fund.

2. Donations to PM CARES Fund will qualify to be counted as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expenditure

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 Only

(b) 2 Only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer