State Bank of India, the country's largest lender, on Tuesday said that its employees has decided to contribute an additional amount of Rs 7.95 crore to the PM CARES Fund, set up by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to tackle distress situations such as that posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The total donation made by SBI employees by letting go of one day's salary and a day's leave encashment now amounts to Rs 107.95 crore, the public sector lender said in a press release.

Earlier in March, around 2.56 lakh employees of SBI had donated Rs100 crore to the PM CARES Fund which is created to fight the coronavirus pandemic. SBI has also committed 0.25 per cent of annual profit for FY 2019-20 as a part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities to fight COVID-19.

"At this time of crisis, SBI is taking all efforts to provide best possible banking services to its customers," the lender said in a press release.

The bank is also constantly urging citizens to avail digital banking services and avoid moving out of the house so that much needed social distancing is maintained, it added.

As the country grapples with the rising number of coronavirus cases, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set up a fund, PM-CARES Fund (Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund) on March 28. The PM said the fund was launched as people from all walks of life expressed desire to donate to India's war against COVID-19.

Last week, PM CARES Fund Trust had allocated Rs 3,100 crore to support fight against coronavirus. Out of Rs 3,100 crore, a sum of approximately Rs 2,000 crore will be earmarked for the purchase of ventilators, Rs 1,000 crore will be used for care of migrant labourers and Rs 100 crore will be given to support vaccine development.