PM Cares Fund trustee nominee Ratan Tata

 In 2020–21 and 2019–20, respectively, the PM CARES Fund raised Rs 7,014 crore and Rs 3,076 crore. Companies may count their contributions to the PM CARES Fund as CSR spending.

Image Source: Onmanorama

A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi presided over a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the PM CARES Fund, the decision was made public.

Ratan Tata, a veteran businessman and the chairman emeritus of Tata Sons, has been named as one of the trustees of the PM Cares Fund, while Sudha Murthy, the former chairperson of the Infosys Foundation, has been added to the advisory board.

Rajiv Mehrishi, the former comptroller and auditor general of India, and Anand Shah, the co-founder of Teach for India and a former CEO of Indicorps and the Piramal Foundation, are two other candidates for the advisory board.

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi presided over a meeting that included the new trustees. The PM evaluated the projects carried out with the aid of the PM CARES Fund. The bigger objective of PM CARES, which was discussed during the meeting, is to "effectively respond to emergency and distress situations, not just by providing relief aid but also by taking steps to mitigate the crisis and building capacity."

The PM CARES Fund's numerous programmes, including the Children programme that supports 4,345 kids, were also discussed in a presentation. In addition to Ratan Tata, Justice KT Thomas, a former judge on the Supreme Court, and Kariya Munda, a former member of parliament, were proposed as trustees for the Fund.

According to the PMO, it was discussed that PM CARES has a bigger vision for efficiently responding to emergency and distress circumstances, not only by providing relief aid but also by taking precautions against future occurrences and strengthening existing capability. The PM thanked the Trustees for joining the PM CARES Fund as a crucial component.

In 2020–21 and 2019–20, respectively, the PM CARES Fund raised Rs 7,014 crore and Rs 3,076 crore. Nearly Rs 4,000 crore will have been spent on the purchase of Covid-19 vaccinations, ventilators, oxygen cylinders, and other items by 2020–21. Companies may count their contributions to the PM CARES Fund as CSR spending.