JOIN USPlea filed in SC for disclosing details on PM Cares Fund
A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking details about the current status of the PM Cares Fund, allocation made through it for Covid-19 relief and other projects and its links with the Union Government
An activist, Saket Gokhale filed an intervention application before court in connection with the Suo Motu case on essential supplies to Covid-19.
He contended that the PM Cares Fund is a non-governmental stakeholder, which was closely involved in decisions and projects related to the distribution and supplies of essentials in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The only information available in the public domain about allocations from PM Cares Fund comes from statements and press releases issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). It is unclear whether, in addition to the allocations declared publicly, there have been other allocations made towards other Covid-19 related expenditure," Gokhale said.
He said the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM Cares Fund) should be made a respondent in the present case, and should be asked to disclose details about the current status.
The plea contended the Centre earlier claimed it had spend no money towards Covid-19 vaccine development. However, PM Cares Fund has declared an allocation of around Rs 100 crores towards vaccine development and it is unclear whether any additional funds were allocated for the purpose.
Similarly, on April 25, the PM Cares Fund announced that it was allocating funds for the setting up of additional 551 dedicated Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) Medical Oxygen Generation Plants inside public health facilities in the country.
However, an RTI filed by the applicant with the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on June 5, 2020 disclosed that PM Cares Fund is not a public authority, amenable to revealing details under the transparency law, the plea pointed out.