So far PM Modi has donated 103 crores from his savings and auction: officials

Prime Minister Narendra Modi donated 2.25 lakhs to the PM Cars Fund as an "Initial Corpus" from his pocket. Funds collected under the PM CARES, short for relief in the Prime Minister's Civil Assistance and Emergency Situation Fund, have been deployed in the fight against the coronavirus epidemic.

A PMO official said, "PM Modi donated Rs 2.25 lakh towards the initial fund of PM Cares Fund after it was set up."

The official said, "PM Modi has contributed and donated to public causes ranging from girl education to the welfare of Dalits and working on cleaning Ganga. These donations have now crossed ₹ 103 crores."

The Congress and other parties have questioned the legal validity of the PM Cares Fund and questioned its necessity, pointing to the Common Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF).

Concern has been expressed over corporate social responsibility benefits denied contribution to the State Disaster Relief Fund. The PM CARES fund cannot be audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General.

The Center has defended the PM Cares Fund, saying it is a voluntary fund while budgetary allocations take care of other disaster response funds.

PM Modi donated 21 lakhs from his savings for the welfare of sanitation workers at the Kumbh Mela held in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh last year.

After receiving the Seoul Peace Prize in South Korea, PM Modi donated the entire prize money of Seoul 1.3 crore for the work on cleaning the Ganges. He donated another 3.40 crores to the auction of his souvenirs for the river cleaning campaign. Officials said that in the auction of gifts received by PM Modi in 2015, Rs 8.35 crore was donated to the Namami Gange Mission.

On completing his term as the Chief Minister of Gujarat, he donated 21 lakhs from his savings to educate the daughters of Gujarat government employees. She collected 89.96 crores by auctioning all the gifts she received as Chief Minister and donated this to the Kanya Kalyan Fund.

The PM CARES fund is exempted under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act and a separate account has been opened for receiving foreign donations. This enables the PM CARES Fund to accept donations and contributions from individuals and organizations abroad.

According to the government, PM Cares Fund website "It is consistent with respect to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF). PMNRF has also received foreign contribution as a public trust since 2011."