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| Edited By: DNA Web Team |Source: DNA Web Desk |Updated: Feb 08, 2022, 03:01 PM IST
The PM CARES Fund, which was set up to deal with the emergencies of the Covid-19 pandemic, registered nearly a three-fold growth in the 2020-21 fiscal. According to the latest audited statement, the corpus grew nearly three-fold to Rs 10,990 crore, while the disbursal rose to Rs 3,976 crore.
The government has used a part of the money to buy medical equipment, including ventilators and has also provided relief to migrants. The disbursal includes Rs 1,000 crore for migrant welfare and over Rs 1,392 crore for procurement of Covid-19 vaccine doses.
Barely a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced setting up of the PM CARES (Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance & Relief in Emergency Situations) Fund on March 28, 2020 donations started pouring in huge amounts, crossing few thousand crores.
PM CARES Fund recorded nearly Rs 494.91 crore as foreign contributions.
It recorded over Rs 7,183 crore as voluntary contributions during the fiscal.
Overall contributions to the fund received in 2019-20 was Rs 3,076.62 crore.
It was collected in just five days of its formation with an initial corpus of Rs 2.25 lakh.
It disbursed Rs 1,311 crore for 50,000 made-in-India ventilators to government hospitals.
Rs 50 crore for the establishment of two 500-beds Covid hospitals in Muzaffarpur and Patna.
16 RT-PCR testing labs were set up in nine states with the PM CARES Fund.
Rs 201.58 crore from the fund was spent on oxygen plants at public health facilities.
Rs 20.4 crore was disbursed for the upgradation of labs working on Covid vaccines.
While Rs 1,000 crore was allotted to states and Union territories for the welfare of migrants.
Rs 1,392.82 crore was spent on the procurement of 6.6 crore doses of Covid vaccines.
The PM CARES Fund also spent Rs 1.01 lakh as bank charges.
The fund's closing balance as of March 31, 2021, stood at Rs 7,013.99 crore.
This was more than double of Rs 3,076.62 crore a year ago in 2019-20.
A total of Rs 10,990.17 crore was received during the 2020-21 fiscal.
This includes through interest income and refund of unspent balance from NDMA.
Rs 3,976.17 crore was dispersed from the PM CARES Fund during the 2020-21 fiscal.
The audited statement is prepared by Chartered Accountants SARC and associates.
