Paytm Collects Rs 100 Cr Contributions for PM-CARES Fund

Digital payments platform Paytm on Saturday said contributions for the PM-CARES Fund for the COVID-19 crisis have crossed Rs 100 crore on its platform.

Paytm had earlier announced it aims to contribute Rs 500 crore to the PM-CARES Fund. It had said for every contribution or any other payment made on Paytm using the wallet, UPI or Paytm Bank debit card, it will contribute an extra up to Rs 10.

"In a little over 10 days, contributions have crossed Rs 100 crores on the Paytm app and the initiative is still going strong," Paytm said in a statement on Saturday.

The company said its employees have also come together and contributed their salaries for the fund.

"Over 1,200 employees have contributed their 15 days, one month, two months to even three months' salary for this noble cause," the statement said.

Amit Veer, senior vice president at Paytm said every citizen in the country needs to come together to fight this global pandemic.

"We urge fellow Indians to contribute wholeheartedly for this cause. We hope our humble contribution to this great cause helps us come out stronger as a nation," he added.

Paytm also said it is seeking donations for meals for daily wage earners and is working on this initiative in association with the KVN Foundation.

Corporate India has been rushing in to help the government and citizens fight the COVID-19 pandemic in India.

Tata Trusts and Tata group together have pledged Rs 1,500 crore -- by far the highest by any corporate.

Wipro Ltd, Wipro Enterprises Ltd and Azim Premji Foundation have together committed Rs 1,125 crore, while Reliance Industries' chief Mukesh Ambani had also committed a further Rs 500 crore to the Prime Minister's COVID-19 fund, topping up over the multi-crore initiative of India's first coronavirus hospital, meals to the needy, and fuel to emergency vehicles.

Infosys Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Infosys, has committed Rs 100 crore, while a number of other companies are also extending support efforts like providing sanitizers, masks and meals to people.

The pandemic -- which has killed over 1,00,000 people across the world -- has claimed 239 lives in India so far. There are over 7,440 people infected with coronavirus in the country. PTI SR

Cyber Security Agency Cautions Against Fake PM-CARES UPI IDs

The national cyber security agency has alerted donors against fake 'UPI IDs' for a special fund launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an advisory issued on Saturday, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) said it has "tracked several fake UPI IDs which are similar to the UPI ID
used by the "Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency
Situations (PM-CARES) Fund".

CERT-In is the country's nodal agency to guard cyber space.

The advisory identified some of the fake UPI IDs in circulation such as pmcares@pnb, pmcares@hdfcbank, pmcare@yesbank, pmcare@ybl, pmcare@upi, pmcare@sbi and pmcares@icici.

"It may be noted that the genuine UPI ID is "pmcares@sbi"and the registered account name is "PM CARES," it said, asking people to verify UPI ID and the registered name before making any donations.

"Citizens, donors and organisations are advised to visit the website  "pmindia.gov.in" for further details about the fund," the advisory said. 

The PM-CARES Fund was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 28 and it has received donations worth crores. 

A message on PM's official website says that keeping in mind the need for having a dedicated national fund with the primary objective of dealing with any kind of emergency or distress situation, like posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and to provide relief to the affected, a public charitable trust under the name of 'Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund' (PM CARES Fund)' was set up. PTI NES

upGrad launches COVID-19 Awareness Program, Aims to Donate ₹ 1 Million to PM-CARES Relief Fund

Mumbai-based edtech major upGrad announced the launch of a ‘COVID-19 Awareness Program’, through which it will be facilitating donation towards the PM-CARES Relief Fund. The ‘COVID-19 Awareness Program’ is a 5-day long online program, where domain experts will give live talks on safeguarding one’s finances, and career along with mental health in the current scenario. The program can be accessed by anyone FREE of cost, on prior registration. For every participant who registers and completes the online program, upGrad will be contributing ₹ 10 per participant to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recently announced COVID-19 Relief (PM-CARES) Fund.

“Infodemic has superseded pandemic, aggravating the panic and negativity around us. From complex questions like - Will the economy head for a super recession; Should I save now or invest now; to personal questions like - Will my kids be able to complete education this year – there are a thousand questions and a zillion opinions floating around. As a leader in the education space, I take it as our duty to now educate the masses with the correct information and implication of the situation,” said Mayank Kumar, Co-Founder & MD, upGrad, who will also be taking one of the sessions during the awareness drive.

The expert sessions will be hosted live, allowing for active interactions and query resolution for the participants. Given the diversity of topics from workforce management to mental health management, upGrad is expecting participation from every nook and corner of India, be it college students, homemakers, c-suite executives or retired professionals.

“The coronavirus situation is a tough one personally for all of us. What's the way to reduce the financial impact on our lives? To ensure future security, I will be discussing investments and managing finances through a time when you have very little control over what you can do,” said Deepak Shenoy, Founder, and CEO, Capitalmind, who will talk about the current financial market scenario and how one goes about making financial decisions.

“Given the current lockdown, from mere boredom to frustration and to post-traumatic stress and depression, a longer period of quarantine is likely to encourage a negative psychological impact on individuals, if not dwelt right. We might overcome the havoc in the coming future, but such a psychological crisis and irrationality would become another challenge, thus creating a larger setback across the society,” said Dr. Naazneen Ladak, practicing psychiatrist - M.D. (Psychiatry) and physiotherapist, who will take a session on the Do’s & Dont’s during the period of social distancing.

upGrad seeks to onboard 1 lakh participants, and thereby plans to contribute Rs. 1 million to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recently announced COVID-19 Relief (PM-CARES) Fund. The program launches on 1st April 2020 and the registration for the same is now open: https://events.upgrad.com/covid-19-awareness-program

Founded in early 2015, upGrad offers online programs for working professionals. In a short span of around 5 years, upGrad on-boarded over 21.5K paid learners and impacted more than 370K individuals globally, making it India’s largest online higher-education company, basis gross revenue generated from the Indian market in FY18-19.

upGrad provides programs in the areas of Data Science, Technology, Management and MBA to college students, working-class and enterprises. These programs are designed and delivered in collaboration with top-notch universities like IIT Madras, IIIT-B, BITS Pilani, MICA, NMIMS Global Access, Duke CE, Deakin University, Liverpool John Moores University and others. To further enhance the learning experience, a comprehensive ecosystem has been built which includes one-on-one mentoring, peer-to-peer learning, industry networking and most importantly expert career guidance providing learners holistic support to elevate their careers to the next level.

The company has been awarded the title of ‘Best Tech for Education’ by IAMAI in 2019. The company received the ‘Best Education Brands’ award by Economic Times and has made it to LinkedIn’s ‘Top 25 Startups’ two years in a row in 2018 and 2019.

TVS Motor Company and Group Companies Pledge Rs. 25 Crores to PM's Relief Fund (PM-CARES) Dedicated to Fight COVID-19

TVS Motor Company, a reputed manufacturer of two-wheelers and three-wheelers and its Group Companies TVS Credit Services Ltd., Sundaram-Clayton Ltd., and others today announced their commitment to donate Rs. 25 Crores to the PM's Relief Fund (PM-CARES) to aid the battle against COVID-19. This is in line with the company's continuous endeavour to ensure prosperous and sustainable communities. It is in addition to the ongoing activities being already undertaken through Srinivasan Services Trust, the CSR arm of the group.

"The COVID-19 pandemic marks an unprecedented time in modern history and it will require the best of humanity to overcome the battle. We applaud the Govt's strong resolve and numerous actions to fight this. Now, more than ever, it requires all of us to cooperate and support each other as a nation,'' said Mr. Venu Srinivasan, Chairman, TVS Motor Company.

Srinivasan Services Trust (SST), the social arm of the group is implementing various measures ranging from manufacturing and supplying supportive equipment such as masks, to providing cooked meals to those in the frontline - from healthcare workers to police officers. Some of the key initiatives that have already begun include:

Making and supplying 1 Million protective face masks for essential service providers

Deploying vehicles and disinfectants to municipalities and helping produce medical equipment

Employing factory kitchens at the manufacturing units in Hosur, Padi and Mysuru to make pre-packed cooked meals. These will be supplied to all essential care workers in the vicinity, from police personnel, municipal staff to healthcare workers

In Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, dry rations will be supplied to daily wage workers who have been displaced and to villagers without food supplies

The company is evaluating collaboration with 3D printing companies to make ventilators to support the hospitals

About TVS Motor Company

TVS Motor Company is a reputed two and three-wheeler manufacturer and is the flagship company of the USD 8.5 billion TVS Group. We believe in Championing Progress through Mobility. Rooted in our 100-year legacy of Trust, Value, and Passion for Customers and Exactness, we take pride in making internationally aspirational products of the highest quality through innovative and sustainable processes. We endeavor to deliver the most superior customer experience at all our touch points across 60 countries. We are the only two-wheeler company to have received the prestigious Deming Prize. Our products lead in their respective categories in the J.D. Power IQS and APEAL surveys for five years. We have been ranked No. 1 Company in the J.D. Power Customer Service Satisfaction Survey for consecutive four years.

For more information, please visit www.tvsmotor.com.

Govt says Contribution to PM-CARES Fund to Qualify as CSR Spending

Contribution by corporates to PM-CARES Fund will be considered as social welfare spending under the companies law, the government has said amid ongoing efforts to deal with the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak.

Under the companies law, certain classes of profitable entities have to shell out at least 2 per cent of their three-year annual average net profit towards Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities in a particular fiscal.

"... any contribution made to the PM-CARES Fund shall qualify as CSR expenditure," Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a tweet on Sunday.

The corporate affairs ministry, which is implementing the companies law, has issued a memorandum clarifying that money donated by corporates to the fund would be considered as CSR expenditure.

The government has set up the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES Fund) which would be utilised to deal with any emergency or distress situation like those in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

"The PM-CARES Fund has been set up to provide relief to those affected by any kind of emergency or distress situation. Accordingly, it is clarified that any kind of contribution made to the PM-CARES Fund shall qualify as CSR expenditure under the Companies Act, 2013," the ministry said in the memorandum issued on Saturday.

The memorandum comes less than a week after the ministry said that spending by corporates to deal with the coronavirus outbreak would be considered as CSR activity under the companies law.

CSR funds could be utilised for various activities related to COVID-19, including those relating to preventive healthcare and sanitation.

Under Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013, every company having net worth of at least Rs 500 crore, turnover of Rs 1,000 crore or more, or a minimum net profit of Rs 5 crore during the immediate preceding financial year has to make CSR expenditure.

The number of coronavirus cases in the country has climbed to 979 and 25 people have lost their lives so far. PTI RAM

Paytm looks to contribute Rs 500 cr to PM CARES Fund

Digital payments company Paytm on Saturday said it aims to contribute Rs 500 crore to Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES).

For every contribution or any other payment made on Paytm using the wallet, UPI and Paytm Bank debit card, the company will contribute an extra up to Rs 10, Paytm said in a statement.

"We are honoured to do our duty to aid the government in all the relief measures being taken to fight the Corona pandemic. We hope our users wholeheartedly donate to PM CARES fund and help save lives," Paytm President Madhur Deora said.

He added that the company will make a contribution for every payment transaction using the Paytm app and instruments, and this money would be directly sent to the PM-CARES fund.

Previously, Paytm had created a Rs 5 crore fund for innovators who are developing medical instruments or medicines to combat the virus.

The PM CARES Fund is exempt under the Income Tax Act, 1961 under Section 10 and 139 for return purposes. Contributions towards PM-CARES are notified for 100 per cent deduction from taxable income under section 80(G) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. PTI SR