On Sunday, a part of the Nanda Devi glacier in Uttarakhand broke in the Tapovan-Reni area of Chamoli District, leaving to large-scale flooding in the Dhauliganga and Alaknanda rivers, damaging hydroelectric projects, houses and more.
More than 200 people had initially been feared dead, and rescue personnel are working through the night as they try to extricate those trapped. The State Disaster Response Fund said on Monday that as many as 26 bodies had been recovered from different areas, while 197 people were still missing.
Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat had earlier directed the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) to release Rs 20 crore funds to carry out rescue and relief operations in the state.
Against this backdrop, those located in various parts of the country can help in various ways. The Press Information Bureau in Uttarakhand has also shared numbers and helplines that can be contacted by those affected by the flooding.
While many on social media platforms have made attempts to support the rescue and relief missions by promoting details such as helpline numbers, others have come forward to donate funds. Here's how you can join in.
How to donate to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Relief Fund
Also known as the Mukhya Mantri Rahat Kosh, the CMRF is an emergency assistance scheme for granting relief to deserving families and individuals affected by natural calamities including floods. Donations made to the fund are a 100% exempted under section 80G of the Income tax Act, and payments can be made both online and offline.
According to the UKCMRF website, payments can be made by directly depositing the selected amount to the account of the Mukhya Mantri Rahat Kosh or via UPI. These payments have to be addressed to the "cmukrf@sbi" VPA or by scanning in the QR code given in the image below. If you're using UPI, you can make payments through a slew of apps including the BHIM app, Paytm, Phone Pe and Google Pay.
You can also log onto the donation section of the Paytm app and search for the Mukhya Mantri Rahat Kosh, or click on the relevant link to make payments to the fund directly using funds from your Paytm wallet.