In view of the urgent need to fight COVID-19 pandemic, Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers DV Sadananda Gowda has urged all the profit making PSUs under his Ministry to donate part of their CSR funds to Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES).

“Government of India is taking all possible steps to prevent spreading of the outbreak, however, a public health situation of this scale requires concerted efforts from all sections of the society. Therefore, I request you all to contribute the maximum possible amount of your CSR budget to PM CARES,” the minister said in a letter to CMDs of all the PSUs.

He added that Government of India has set up the PM CARES fund with the primary objective of dealing with any kind of emergency or distress situation such as that posed by COVID-19 pandemic and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has already clarified that any contribution made to the said fund shall qualify as CSR expenditure under the Companies Act 2013.

Gowda said that it is a good opportunity for the PSUs to utilise their unspent CSR funds for financial year 2019-20 by contributing to the above fund immediately. Similarly, the companies may also contribute to this fund from April 2020 onwards for FY 2020-21.

The Minister said that he has also requested CMDs of all the PSUs to motivate the employees of their company to voluntarily contribute at least one day of their monthly salary to PM CARES fund.

Gowda has donated his one month salary and Rs 1 crore from his MPLAD fund to PM National Relief Fund.

Be a part of Elets Collaborative Initiatives. Join Us for Upcoming Events and explore business opportunities. Like us on Facebook , connect with us on LinkedIn and follow us on Twitter, Instagram.

"Exciting news! Elets technomedia is now on WhatsApp Channels Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest insights!" Click here!