Analyzing PM CARES FUND Through the Lens of Good Governance

BY : Kinjal

ABSTRACT

The PM- CARES FUND, as the name suggest is a fund which came into being during
the pandemic to give assistance to people who were affected by pandemic. The fund
has been subject of controversy quite a few times. Recently the PMO office informed
the Delhi High Court that PM-CARES FUND does not come under the definition of
public authority nor falls under the Ambit of Article 12. The main question that
remains is how it can be a private fund when it is supported by government and how
can it be in government’s name and not be called as public authority. Thus, this paper
tends to analyse the fund keeping in mind the principles of good governance and
analysing it through legal as well as economic perspective as to see how effectively it
can be a parameter of good governance.

SCOPE :

To analyse the PM CARES FUND through the lens of good governance

To apply the principles of good governance to the policy i.e. PM-Cares Fund

LIMITATIONS :

The information mainly relies on secondary data available on the internet

The data provided on the internet was limited

GOOD
GOVERNANCE

Good Governance is the “the manner in which power is exercised in the management
of a country’s economic and social resources for development.”1
8 PRINCIPLES OF GOOD GOVERNANCE-

1
DrishtiIAS, 'Good Governance', (2021) DrishtiIAS, available at
https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper4/good-governance-2 [accessed 13 March 2023].

1|Page
 Effectiveness
and efficiency

Consensus-
oriented
Rule of law

GOOD
Accountability GOVERNANCE Transparency

Participation
Equity and
inclusiveness
Responsiveness

 Rule of law –
Fair laws that are impartially applied are a necessity for good governance. Human
rights must also be fully protected, those of minorities, in particular. A free and
independent judiciary as well as a fair and uncorrupted police force are necessary for
impartial law enforcement.2

 Transparency –

It refers to their easy as well as convenient flow and access to free media and
information. It means to keep citizens informed. It must be observable, intelligible,
and available to the general public.3

 Participation –

Participation includes the right of association as well as freedom of expression. It

implies the right to express oneself through legitimate representatives of the society.

2
ibid.
3
Ibid.

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Men and women, weaker groups in society, lower classes, people of colour, etc. are all
included in this. 4

 Responsiveness -

Institutions and processes must make an effort to serve all stakeholders in a timely
manner 5

 Equity and Inclusiveness –

An equitable society is ensured by effective governance. It makes sure that inclusivity

is maintained running across all age groups, irrespective of colour, caste, creed,
gender etc.

 Accountability-

To ensure good governance, accountability plays a big role. The local organisation,
government, civil sector organisations, private players should be held accountable and
responsible for their actions.

 Consensus-oriented –

The goal of consensus-oriented decision-making is to ensure that even if no one gets

everything they want, at least everyone can reach a shared minimum that won't hurt
anyone so as to promote the best interests of the society.

 Effectiveness and Efficiency –

Institutions and processes should be able to deliver outcomes that satisfy the needs of
their local community. The community's resources should be effectively used to their
maximum potential level.

4
Ibid.
5
United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. 'Good Governance: A Conceptual
Perspective'. United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (2003), available at
https://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/good-governance.pdf [accessed 13 March 2023]

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 PM-CARES
FUND

The Indian government established the PM CARES (Prime Minister's Citizen

Assistance and Relief in Emergency Circumstances Fund) in March 2020 to solicit
donations for the COVID-19 pandemic relief effort. The trust is chaired by the prime
minister of India. and includes the ministers of defence, home affairs, and finance as
its members.6
6
BYJU's, 'PM CARES Fund', BYJU's (2022), available at https://byjus.com/govt-exams/pm-cares-fund/
[accessed 13 March 2023stat

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The fund was established with the intention of assisting those impacted by the
pandemic and bolstering India's effort to combat the illness. The goal of the fund is to
assist those who are working on the front lines of the pandemic fight, including as
healthcare professionals, individuals, and organisations, and citizens who are affected
by the pandemic.

ANALYSIS

1. RULE OF LAW -
With respect to the rule of law, there have been some concerns raised about the fund.
Some of these concerns include:

Absence of parliamentary oversight: Since there is no parliamentary

monitoring of the PM CARES fund, elected representatives are not able to
scrutinise its administration and expenditures.

Exemption from RTI Act: Being designated as a "public charitable trust," it is

exempted from the scope of the Right to Information (RTI) Act. This implies
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 that the RTI Act cannot be used by citizens to get information on the
management or use of the fund.

Lack of disclosure: Concerns have been raised about the fund's failure to
disclose the sources and volume of donations it has received. There have been
suspicions that donations from public sector undertakings have been diverted
from their corporate social responsibility (CSR) coffers to the PM CARES
fund, although the government has not disclosed specific details on the
donations received.

Non-compliance with CSR regulations: Despite the PM CARES fund not being
a registered charity under the Companies Act, the government has permitted
contributions to the fund to be included in a company's required CSR spending.

FCRA : A special account has been set up to accept donations from overseas.
This makes it possible for the PM CARES Fund to receive gifts and
contributions from people and organisations based abroad. The Foreign
Contribution Regulation Act would also exempt foreign contributions to the
PM CARES Fund (FCRA).

2. TRANSPARENCY -

Regarding transparency, The fund was established with the main goals of aiding
efforts to stop the pandemic's spread and helping those who were afflicted by it.

There has been debate and criticism surrounding the PM CARES Fund. The lack of
transparency in the fund's functioning and utilization of funds is one of the key
critiques levelled at it. Unlike to other public funds, the PM CARES Fund's accounts
are not audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), the nation's
highest auditing body, and therefore are not subject to review under the Right to
Information Act. The government has defended the lack of transparency by stating
that the PM CARES Fund is a private trust and not a public fund, and therefore, it is
not subject to the same level of scrutiny as public funds. However, critics have argued

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that the fund is being used for public purposes and should, therefore, be subject to
public scrutiny.

In Centre for Public Interest Litigation v. Union of India 7, the Supreme court stated
that The PM CARES Fund is a public charitable trust and is not a Government fund.
The mere fact that administration of the Trust is vested in trustees, i.e., a group of
people, will not itself take away the public character of the Trust as has been laid
down in Mulla Gulam Ali & Safiabai D. Trust Vs. Deelip Kumar & Co 8. It was
stated that the “ contributions made by individuals and institutions in the PM CARES
Fund are to be released for public purpose to fulfil the objective of the trust. The PM
CARES Fund is a charitable trust registered under the Registration Act, 1908 at New
Delhi. The trust does not receive any Budgetary support or any Government money. It
is not open for the petitioner to question the wisdom of trustees to create PM CARES
fund which was constituted with an objective to extend assistance in the wake of
public health emergency that is pandemic COVID-19.” This however, doesn’t answer
the transparency aspect.

Nonetheless, in August 2020, the Supreme Court of India ruled that the PM CARES
Fund should be transparent in its operations and that its funds should be audited by an
independent auditor. However, the government has not yet appointed an independent
auditor to audit the fund's accounts.

3. PARTICIPATION-

The two goals behind the creation of the fund were –

 Aiding those afflicted by the pandemic

 bolstering India's effort to combat the disease

The goal of the fund is to aid those fighting the pandemic on the front lines, including
healthcare professionals, people, and organisations, as well as citizens who have been
adversely affected by the pandemic to promote their well-being and health.

7
8

7|Page
With regards to participation , the PM CARES Fund being public charitable fund
invites individuals and organisations, companies to make any amount of contributions
they like to, which is completely optional. Participation in the fund is entirely
voluntary, and individuals and organizations are free to contribute as much or as little
as they wish. However, the government has encouraged people to contribute to the
fund to support the country's efforts in combating the pandemic.

The fund has received contributions from a large number of people and organisations,
including businesses, celebrities, and the general public. The government has also
made it simpler to give by enabling donations through a variety of channels, including
bank donations, online payments, and UPI. The government has also contributed
significantly to the fund with its own money. Section 80G of the Income Tax Code
allows tax deductions for contributions made to the PM CARES Fund.

The PM CARES Fund has been utilised to support a variety of initiatives such as the
donation of ventilators, personal protective equipment (PPE), and other critical
medical supplies to hospitals and healthcare professionals. Also, the fund has been
utilised to give financial support to those impacted by the pandemic, including as
migrant workers and the families of healthcare workers who have died in the line of
duty. The Indian Companies Act has also recognised the fund as a corporate social
responsibility (CSR) initiative, allowing businesses to make donations to the fund as
part of their CSR obligations.

Overall, the PM CARES Fund has received voluntary participation from a variety of
sources. The fund has been crucial in India's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic
and has assisted in giving individuals afflicted by the illness much-needed support.

However, there has been some criticism regarding the transparency and accountability
of the PM CARES Fund, and some have questioned the need for a separate fund when
the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) already exists to address similar
issues. Nonetheless, the PM CARES Fund continues to receive contributions and
support from various quarters to aid in the country's fight against the COVID-19
pandemic.

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 4. RESPONSIVENESS-

In terms of response, the PM CARES Fund has been able to rapidly and efficiently
raise funding to support numerous COVID-19-related programmes. The fund, for
instance, has helped to support the construction of COVID-19 testing and treatment
facilities, the manufacture of medical devices like ventilators and PPE kits, and the
distribution of financial aid to individuals in need. Also, the PM CARES Fund has
been able to deal with crises other than the COVID-19 epidemic. For instance, the
amount was applied to the relief efforts for Assam and Bihar flood victims in 2020.

The PM CARES Fund was able to deliver timely and crucial help during the COVID-
19 outbreak, demonstrating its responsiveness. The fund was used towards a number
of projects, including procuring additional hospital beds, buying medical supplies ,
and supplying disadvantaged populations with food essentials and other necessities.
The fund has also been used to support research related activities such as pandemics,
vaccine development, and other areas. The fund also showed responsiveness in its
quick disbursal of funds to states and Union Territories, allowing them to respond to
the pandemic effectively. In addition, the fund was used to provide financial
assistance to the families of healthcare workers who lost their lives while on duty
during the pandemic.

On the other hand, the PM CARES Fund is criticised for lacking transparency and
accountability, which makes it challenging to determine its true responsiveness. Some
people have expressed concern regarding the fund's management and funding
distribution not being subjected to sufficient oversight.

The PM CARES Fund has proven to be highly responsive in mobilising resources to

meet catastrophes, but more transparency and accountability are required to guarantee
that the funds are utilised effectively and efficiently.

5. EQUITY AND INCLUSIVENESS-

9|Page
The PM CARES Fund has drawn criticism for its lack of transparency in terms of
funding and allocation. It is unknown how donations to the fund are being used, and it
has not been exposed to the same amount of scrutiny as other public funds. This lack
of transparency can raise questions about the equity of the fund and whether it is being
used to benefit all those in need.

Another criticism of the PM CARES Fund is that it may not be sufficiently inclusive.
Although the COVID-19 relief efforts in India have received the majority of the fund's
help, there are worries that other communities may have been overlooked. For
instance, the lack of resources and assistance offered by the fund for migrant workers
and vulnerable communities, can worsen existing disparities.

Questions have also been raised over the distribution of funds from the PM CARES
Fund. Some claim that the fund was not dispersed in a fair and inclusive manner, but
rather for politically driven motives.

Concerns have also been voiced over the PM CARES Fund's accessibility to
underprivileged communities, particularly those who might not have access to online
donation platforms or who might not be aware of the fund's existence. By prioritizing
transparency and inclusiveness, the PM CARES Fund can ensure that it is serving all
those who need support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

6. ACCOUNTABILITY -

The PM CARES Fund's lack of the same transparency and supervision as other
government funds is the fundamental problem with its accountability. The fund is
neither subject to the Right to Information (RTI) Act, which permits citizens to
request information from the government, nor is it audited by the Comptroller and
Auditor General (CAG) of India, who is in charge of reviewing all government
finances.

Concerns have also been expressed about the use of the fund's resources, which is not
entirely clear. Allegations of favouritism in the distribution of resources and reports of

10 | P a g e
delays in distributing funding to states have been made. It is difficult to ensure that the
resources of the fund are allocated in an efficient and transparent manner without clear
standards and reporting procedures in place. Some states reportedly received more
financial aid than others, according to reports of inconsistencies in the funding
distribution. In addition, the government's choice to use a portion of the funding for
initiatives unrelated to the COVID-19 pandemic, such the construction of a new
Parliament building, has drawn criticism.

Opposition parties and civil society organisations have asked for greater oversight and
openness of the fund as a result of the lack of accountability and transparency. Some
have also suggested merging the fund with the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund
(PMNRF), which is subject to stricter accountability and transparency rules.

Some of the key issues with respect to accountability are:

No legal mandate: Unlike other government funds like the NDRF, the PM
CARES Fund is not subject to the same legal and parliamentary oversight. As a
result, the fund is exempt from disclosure requirements with regard to
information regarding its activities, including the sources and use of funds.
There is a lack of transparency because the PM CARES Fund has not disclosed
information on the donors, the sum of money received, or the recipients.
Although the government claims that the fund is audited by a third party, the
audit reports have not been made available to the public.
Exclusion from RTI: The PM CARES Fund has been excluded from the
purview of the Right to Information Act, which means that citizens cannot
access information about the fund through RTI applications.
Not utilized for stated purposes: There have been reports of the PM CARES
Fund being used for non-COVID-19 related purposes, such as the construction
of a new parliament building, despite the fund being created specifically for
pandemic relief efforts.

7. CONSENSUS- ORIENTED-

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To be consensus-oriented, a fund must involve all relevant stakeholders in the
decision-making process, including opposition parties, civil society organizations, and
affected communities. There must also be transparency in the fund's management and
regular updates on how the funds are being utilized.

The PM CARES Fund has come under fire for lacking inclusivity in its decision-
making process, which is in line with being consensus-oriented.. The fund is managed
by a trust made up of government representatives; neither opposition parties nor civil
society organisations are represented on the trust. The fact that the fund was
established without concerned stakeholders from civil society organisations or
opposition parties is one of the key objections levelled against. Concerns have been
raised concerning the possibility that the fund is being utilised by the current
administration to consolidate power and circumvent established institutional systems
for disaster assistance. Concerns regarding the transparency and accountability of the
fund have arisen as a result of this lack of inclusivity. In addition, The fund was set up
through an executive order rather than legislation, which has led to concerns about the
lack of parliamentary oversight and public accountability.

Additionally, the management of the fund has been criticized for failing to provide
regular reports on how the funds are being used, which has fuelled doubt and
scepticism about the effectiveness of the fund.

These concerns highlight the importance of ensuring that public funds are managed in
an open and transparent manner, with the involvement of all relevant stakeholders.

8. EFFECTIVENESS AND EFFIECIENY-

PM CARES has been the subject of debate and scrutiny regarding its effectiveness
and efficiency.

Effectiveness:

It has been contested whether the PM CARES Fund is effective at helping those
affected by emergencies. Some contend that the fund has been essential in providing
support and assistance to those in India who have been impacted by the COVID-19

12 | P a g e
outbreak. The fund has been utilised to construct up COVID-19 care facilities, provide
financial assistance to needy groups of society, and provide vital medical equipment
such as ventilators and personal protective equipment (PPE) to healthcare personnel.
The COVID-19 pandemic-related research and development projects, including as the
creation of vaccinations, diagnostic tools, and medications, have all been supported by
the PM CARES Fund.

Additionally, there have been allegations of favouritism and non-transparency in the

allocation of funds.

Efficiency:

The efficiency of the PM CARES Fund has also been a subject of debate. In
comparison to other existing programmes, the government asserts that the PM CARES
Fund has been more effective at disbursing funds and offering relief. The COVID-19
pandemic has reportedly affected migrant workers, healthcare professionals, and other
people in need, and the fund has apparently been able to provide immediate aid. For
instance, some have questioned the necessity of building new hospitals when those
already in existence could have been upgraded upon. In addition, reports of delays in
the delivery of medical goods bought using PM CARES funds have surfaced.

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 LEGAL ANGLE

As mentioned above, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has stated that the PM
CARES Fund does not qualify as a "public authority" under the Right to Information
Act of 2005 or as a "State" under Article 12 of the Indian Constitution. According to
the affidavit submitted by the Under Secretary of PMO, the PM CARES Fund was
established as a public charitable trust and was not established by, or pursuant to, the
Indian Constitution, the Parliament, or any State Legislature. The issue arose after a
petitioner/lawyer, Samyak Gangwal, filed a petition seeking that the PM-CARES fund
to be declared as the “State” under Article 12 of the Constitution. He had also sought

14 | P a g e
for the fund to be designated as a “public authority” under Section 2(h) of the RTI
Act.9

1) Public authority” under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act

“Public authority” means any authority or body or institution of self- government

established or constituted— (a) by or under the Constitution; (b) by any other law
made by Parliament; (c) by any other law made by state legislature; (d) by notification
issued or order made by the appropriate Government, and includes any— (i) body
owned, controlled or substantially financed; (ii) non-Government organization
substantially financed, directly or indirectly by funds provided by the appropriate
Government;

The PMO runs the Fund, but it claims that as it is not a public entity, it is unable to
provide any information regarding the PM CARES Fund. The PMO entirely ignores
the fact that it is a public body and is required by the RTI to provide us with
information on the fund. The money that the Fund receives is not transferred to the
Consolidated Fund of India. The CAG may have conducted an audit on it if it gets to
the CFI. The Government must make sure that this Fund is accountable and eliminate
any chance of corruption because it is not audited by CAG. Regarding its funding
sources and disbursement, it should be open.

In addition to it, the govt contented that “This Trust is neither intended to be or is in
fact owned, controlled, or substantially financed by any Central Government or State
Government or any instrumentality of the any Government. In other words, there is no
control of either the Central Government or any State Governments, either direct or
indirect, in functioning of the Trust in any manner whatsoever.” 10 However it is
interesting to note that the same is completely belied by the fact that every day,
incalculable sums of money are being pumped into the PM-Cares Fund from various
Ministries, agencies, and departments of the Government.11
9
Indian Express, 'PM CARES Fund a Public Authority under RTI Act: Delhi HC', Indian Express (2021),
available at https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/pm-cares-fund-public-authority-rti-act-centre-delhi-
high-court-8414937/ [accessed 13 March 2023].
10
The Hindu, 'Oceans of money diverted to PM CARES Fund, says plea in SC', The Hindu (2021), available at
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/oceans-of-money-diverted-to-pm-cares-fund-says-plea-in-sc/
article35789115.ece [accessed 13 March 2023].
11
Divya Pal Singh & Anr. v Union of India & Anr., (2021) 5 SCC 647.

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The Prime Minister is the ex-officio Chairman and three cabinet Ministers (for
Defence, Home, and Finance) are ex-officio members. The PM CARES Fund is
advertised by the government as "PM announces new fund for citizens to give towards
Government fight against Coronavirus.” Given that the organisation claims to be
independent of the government, it is intriguing that the Prime Minister serves as its
chair. While it is claimed that the Board of Trustees is unrelated to the Government, it
is notable that the Prime Minister serves as its chair. The PM CARES Fund could turn
into office for profit if it is not affiliated with the government. And that might make
him and the three Ministers ineligible to occupy those constitutional positions.12

Case law : Thalappalam Service Coop. Bank Ltd. vs State of Kerala 13.

In this case the Supreme court stated that to determine whether the respondent is a
"public authority" or not, the Prime Minister, who serves as chairman, and three
Cabinet Ministers, who serve as members, decide whether it is or is not in their
official capacities. The composition of the board of trustees cannot be used as a
determining factor. The main job of this board is to decide how to use the money that
has been raised. The initiatives are handled by the Prime Minister's Office. This is
‘substantial control’ which is the test to determine its character as a public authority
under the RTI. 14

2) Exemption under Income Tax Act

Section 80G of the Indian Income Tax Act allows you a tax deduction on donations
made to charitable organisations. However, The mere grant of certain tax exemptions
with regard to the voluntary donations made to a public trust is not a determinative
factor for the purpose of Section 2(h) of the RTI Act. An ordinance was promulgated
to amend Income Tax Act, 1961 and declare that the donations to the PM CARES
Fund “would qualify for 80G benefits for 100% exemption”. According to the
Companies Act of 2013, contributions to the PM CARES Fund are also eligible to be
12
The Hindu, 'Oceans of money diverted to PM CARES Fund, says plea in SC', The Hindu (2021), available at
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/oceans-of-money-diverted-to-pm-cares-fund-says-plea-in-sc/
article35789115.ece [accessed 13 March 2023].
13
Thalappalam Service Coop. Bank Ltd. v State of Kerala, (2013) 3 SCC 590
14
The Hindu, 'A fund without a care for the RTI', The Hindu (2021), available at
https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/a-fund-without-a-care-for-the-rti/article36743787.ece [accessed 13
March 2023].

16 | P a g e
accounted for as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expenses. Also, the PM
CARES Fund has been granted an exemption from the FCRA [Foreign Contribution
Regulation Act] and a separate account has been set up to receive donations from
abroad. All of this equates to significant funding.15

3) Indian Trusts Act-

Section 19 of the Indian Trusts Act mandates the trustees to present full and accurate
information of the amount and state of the trust property to the beneficiaries. Because
of this statutory access, all information about the PM CARES Fund should be
accessible as per Section 2(f) of RTI Act; “information” here means any material in
any form, including records, documents, memos, e-mails, opinions, advices, press
releases, circulars, orders, logbooks, contracts, reports, papers, samples, models, data
material held in any electronic form and information relating to any private body
which can be accessed by a public authority under any other law for the time being in
force” (this enables access to information of trust even if it is private, through the
Indian Trusts Act). The claim that the PM CARES Fund is not a public authority is
absurd to say the least.16

15
Ibid.
16
Ibid.

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 ECONOMIC
IMPACT OF PM
CARES FUND

The exact amount of money raised by the PM Cares fund is not publicly known, as the
fund has not disclosed its financial information. However, some figures related to the
fund have been reported in the media and by government sources.

Here are some of the statistics and figures related to the PM Cares fund-

According to an audited statement uploaded on the PM-CARES Fund's website on

Monday, the fund gathered 10,990 crore in its first year to March 2021, and used
3,976 crore, or 36.17% of the money, for various relief and capacity building
programmes.

According to the announcement, the fund was left with 7,014 crore in unused money
after its first year of operation.
18 | P a g e
The majority of the funds were spent on acquiring Covid-19 vaccine doses — 1,392
crore (35%) to purchase 66 million shots. A total of 1,311 crore (33%) was spent on
purchasing 50,000 "made in India" ventilators, while 1,000 crore was distributed to
states and union territories (UTs) for migrant welfare.

Another 201 crore was spent on installing 162 pressure swing adsorption (PSA)
medical oxygen generation plants inside public health facilities across the country, as
well as about 50 crore on establishing 16 RT-PCR testing labs in nine states and UTs,
as well as two 500-bed makeshift Covid-19 hospitals in Muzzafarpur and Patna,
according to the statement. A total of 20 crore was also allocated to two autonomous
institute laboratories under the department of biotechnology for the purpose of
converting them into central drug laboratories (CDLs) for testing batches of Covid-19
vaccines.

Fig. 1

Source : Business Insider

19 | P a g e
 Fig. 2

Source : Business insider

DONATIONS TO PM CARES FUND - Compassion or Coercion?

Over the course of this project, we looked at the donations made by various large and
small businesses to the PM CARES fund. We noticed bizarre incidents where some
companies slashed a major chunk of their workforce, but donated a hefty amount to
the fund. For example, global health and wellness startup CureFit shut down all their
operations across small towns in India, resulting in massive job cuts.

However, they announced that the company will be donating Rs 5 crores to the PM
CARES fund. This received massive outrage from people who compared this donation
with the Rs 2 crore fund the company decided to set up for its employers. Considering
that the PM CARES fund declared that all corporate donations will be receiving 100%
tax exemption and will be considered in lieu of the company’s CSR obligations, it is
no surprise that many big businesses poured crores of donations into the fund.
However, some reports claim that the Centre has made subtle moves which hint at the
government strong arming businesses into donating to the fund. Reuters had recently
20 | P a g e
reported that the Ministry of Corporate Affairs had sent out a letter on March 30 to
various corporates, titled as “An Appeal”, to donate to the PM CARES fund.

In fact, those companies that had already met their CSR obligations, were encouraged
to go “over and above” and make donations to offset their future CSR obligations.
Centre had directed all Steel PSUs to fulfil their CSR obligations for the year by
donating to the PM CARES fund. Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that the
extra donations would be offset later, but for now, all Steel PSUs are to ‘deposit
unspent CSR funds of the current fiscal and the CSR funds of the next fiscal into the
PM CARES Fund’. The Ministry of Steel later released a statement declaring a joint
donation of Rs 267.55 crore, by 8 steel PSUs, to the PM CARES fund.

In fact, various state government employees have spoken out anonymously against the
constant pressure they are facing to donate to the fund. A popular news publication
spoke to many administrative officials, and they claimed that although the donations
are supposed to be voluntary in nature, they are facing a subtle pressure at every turn
in the form of constant reminders from senior officials, to donate to the fund.

A circular was issued by the Department of Revenue on 17th April, appealing to all
officers and staff to “contribute their one day’s salary every month till March 2021 to
the PM CARES Fund to aid the government’s efforts to fight the coronavirus
pandemic”. Many officials who are at a junior level and receive less pay, felt that this
imposition on them was grossly unfair.

Even though the circular claims that the donations are voluntary, officials do not want
to be identified as the one that did not donate and come under the scanner of their
respective departments. Similar appeals have been made in various other public and
private institutions. The employees have acquired a copy of a mail sent out by one of
the branches of State Bank of India, which requested to donate a part of their salary to
the PM CARES fund.

On further probing, it was discovered that there existed a presence of a toxic culture in
many public institutions, where peer pressure pushed people to make certain
behavioural decisions that they are otherwise unwilling to make. So even if an

21 | P a g e
employee did not wish to donate, the subtle and often silent disapproval of their
colleagues would push them to behave according to what is expected of them. It is
therefore no secret that many companies have pledged hundreds of crores as donations
to the PM CARES Fund. The question that remains to be asked is that if these big
companies have already committed their CSR obligations for this year to the
government, how will the CSOs fare in the days ahead.

COMPARISON OF DONATIONS TO CSR EXPENDITURE

Many humanitarian organisations have raised worry about funds being transferred
from low-level humanitarian activities and towards the PM Cares Fund. Al Jazeera
spoke with Namita Gopal, a CSR consultant based in Mumbai, who highlighted fears
about the future of CSOs in the nation since they are now being left high and dry by
corporations seeking to win over the government. In order to compare expenditures
with donations to the PM CARES Fund, we examined data from a representative
sample size of 10 of the top spenders in the field of corporate social responsibility for
the 2018–2019 fiscal year. The results demonstrated that large corporations would
contribute a sizable sum of money to the PM Cares Fund in 2020.17

17
Chakravarty, Panya and Bose, Sumedha, The Curious Case of Pm Cares Fund: Corporate Social
Responsibility and the Suppression of Civil Society in India (March 24, 2020). International Journal of Social
Science and Economic Research, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3833361 or
http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3833361

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 Fig 3

Source : International Journal of Social Science and Economic Research18

A comparative analysis confirms our fears of funding for CSOs drying up severely for the year ahead.
If this fund was to continue offering 100% tax exemption along with donations being counted as part
of CSR, then this could be a long-term trend that jeopardizes the future of many small and large non-
profits working across the country.

CONCLUSION

18
ibid

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The citizen’s right to information is increasingly being recognised as an important
mechanism to promote openness, transparency, and accountability in the affairs of the
State. Hence, even though the PM cares fund is transparent and fulfil all the
parameters when it comes to participation, efficiency , being consensus-oriented, it is
still quite opaque when it comes to transparency and accountability. Thus, there is a
need to enhance transparency as well as accountability. Quoting,

“The ideals of democracy can never be realised, unless there is transparency,

accountability, and responsiveness in the affairs of governance”

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