New Delhi: While state-run IOC (IndianOil Corporation) and ONGC (Oil & Natural Gas Corporation) employees contributed two-days' salary to the PM CARES (Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations) fund, MOIL Limited staff contributed a day's salary to the same on Monday to assist the government in its fight against Coronavirus pandemic.
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, the government has set up a public charitable trust under the name of 'Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund' (PM CARES Fund).' The Prime Minister is the chairman of this trust and its members include Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
In an official statement, IndianOil Chairman Sanjeev Singh said, "All of us have a duty to support our country and its people in as many ways as possible. Therefore, as a humanitarian gesture, all of us shall be contributing two days' salary to Hon'ble Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund. I also appeal to all IOCians to rise to the occasion and do whatever is best possible from their end in these difficult times."
In a video message released on Twitter, ONGC CMD Shashi Shanker said, "I firmly believe that together we will overcome this national crisis." In a tweet, ONGC said that the two-days' salary of its employees would work out to be Rs 16 crore. These contributions have been made in addition to CSR contributions made by these PSUs.
The news comes as India has so far reported 1,071 confirmed cases and 29 deaths due to Coronavirus pandemic. The Ministry of Health has said that Coronavirus transmission in India is still at the local stage and reiterated that it took 12 days for cases of infection to rise from 100 to 1,000, which is a rate that is much slower than some of the developed countries.
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