PM CARES Fund is registered unlike PMNRF set up by Congress govt: Nirmala Sitharaman
New Delhi: Taking the Opposition head-on, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said while the PM CARES Fund is registered, the PM National Relief Fund, which was set up by the Congress government, was not yet registered.
She wondered why the Congress government never bothered to get the PM National Relief Fund (PMNRF) registered.
The minister, while replying to the debate on Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020, was responding to various issues raised by the Congress and other Opposition parties about the PM CARES Fund.
The Fund was set up by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide relief in times of emergency.
Observing that the PM National Relief Fund was set up in 1948, Sitharaman wanted to know why the Congress did not ask for its registration.
"Till today you didn't bother to ask it to be registered, I don't understand why. You should have actually asked. .. No, not one voice in that party. It took 23 MPs to write a letter now after 50 years. Like charity, transparency should start from home," she said.
Replying to questions raised by Opposition members over PM CARES Fund, Sitharaman compared its provisions, including registration, objectives, audit, RTI ambit, administration, management, CSR funding and tax deductions available, with that of PMNRF.
She said the big difference between PM CARES and PMNRF lies in the management of the funds. In PM CARES while Prime Minister is the ex-officio member and trustees include Ministers of Home, Defence and Finance, and nominated ex-officio trustees who are eminent persons from the field of science. "Management and decision making goes on record with regularly held meetings and recorded minutes," she said.
Whereas, in PMNRF, the management consists of Prime Minister, and President of the Congress party.
"Only party. And that only party's president will be there and transparency is achieved? How many political parties are there in the country? Thousands of parties we have," she added.
The Congress government, she said, could have given a place to Jan Sangh leader Shyama Prasad Mukherjee or socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia on the board of trustees of the PM National Relief Fund.
Instead, she said, the Congress government thought it fit to give a place to the Congress president alone, as if it was the only political party.
The minister further said that objectives of both the PM CARES Fund and the PM National Relief Fund are the same and both enjoy similar tax benefits.
Sitharaman further said that 100 per cent tax exemptions are available on donations made to both the funds. Also donations by companies under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) are allowed for both funds.
Trinamool Congress member Saugata Roy wanted to know about the need to set up the second fund when the objectives of both funds are the same.
Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury accused the government of trampling transparency by not disclosing the details of utilization of the PM CARES Fund.
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Dangerous explosives found outside Kerala school
Palakkad (PTI): Explosives found outside a school compound in Vadakanthara in this district on Wednesday were confirmed to be of a dangerous nature, according to the First Information Report (FIR).
The explosives were found on Wednesday evening when a student threw one of the devices--which are suspected to be used for eliminating wild boar--resulting in an explosion, causing minor injuries to both himself and an elderly woman nearby, police said.
The FIR states that Narayanan, a 10-year-old student, discovered the explosives near the gate of the Vyasa Vidhya Peedom pre-primary school compound in Vadakanthara at around 3.45 pm.
Excited over the discovery, he threw one of the explosives to the ground, which then exploded with a loud sound, injuring himself and 84-year-old Leela, who was standing nearby.
School authorities and residents rushed to the scene and called the police who searched the place and found four more explosives in a bucket.
The injured were taken to the hospital, and their condition is stable, said police sources.
Palakkad North police have registered a case under section 3(a) (causing an explosion that is likely to endanger life), section 4(a) (keeping explosives with an intention to endanger life and property) of the Explosive Substance Act, and section 75 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act that deals with cruelty to children.
The FIR of the case stated that explosives were of a dangerous nature and were kept at the place to endanger human life.
A team led by a DySP-ranked officer is investigating the case.
According to police, CCTV cameras in the area have been recovered as part of the investigation, and attempts are being made to identify people who kept explosives near the school compound.
BJP district leaders alleged a major conspiracy behind the incident and demanded a thorough probe.
CPI(M) leaders alleged that the school management is affiliated with RSS, and there is training given to volunteers in the area.
Congress has also called for a detailed probe into the incident.
