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Tag: PM Cares Fund

  • Govt to procure 1 lakh portable oxygen concentrators from PM Cares Fund: Prime Minister Modi

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The government will procure one lakh portable oxygen concentrators and install 500 more pressure swing adsorption oxygen plants from the PM Cares Fund, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday, asserting this will help improve access to oxygen, especially in district headquarters and tier-2 cities.

    The PMO said in a statement that the oxygen concentrators and the new PSA plants will greatly augment the supply of oxygen near the demand clusters.

    The decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Modi to discuss the measures needed to improve the supply of Liquid Medical Oxygen for COVID-19 management.

    Modi has directed that these oxygen concentrators should be procured at the earliest and provided in states with high case burden, the statement said.

    The 500 new PSA oxygen plants sanctioned under PM Cares Fund are in addition to the earlier sanctioned 713 PSA plants under this fund, the statement added.

    Modi tweeted, “1 lakh portable oxygen concentrators will be procured, 500 more PSA oxygen plants sanctioned from PM-CARES. This will improve access to oxygen, especially in district HQs and Tier-2 cities.”

    These 500 PSA plants will be established with the transfer of the indigenous technology developed by DRDO and CSIR to the domestic manufacturers.

    Establishing PSA plants and procurement of portable oxygen concentrators will greatly augment the supply of oxygen near the demand clusters, thereby addressing the current logistical challenges in transporting oxygen from plants to hospitals, the statement said.

    The demand for life-saving gas has increased with the surge in the COVID cases with several hospitals sending out SOS for its supply.

    Several deaths have also been reported due to lack of oxygen supply in hospitals.

  • DRDO to set up 500 Medical Oxygen Plants within 3 months under PM CARES fund

    Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: In a bid to fulfill the oxygen need of Covid patients, the DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) has decided to set up 500 Medical Oxygen Plants (MOPs) across India within three months. These plants will be installed under the PM CARES fund.

    Bharat Bhushan Babu, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence, said: “The DRDO has initiated fabrication of 380 numbers of Medical Oxygen Plants (MOPs) with the release of Supply Orders for 332 numbers on M/s Tata Advanced Systems Limited, Bengaluru and 48 numbers on M/s Trident Pneumatics Pvt. Ltd., Coimbatore with a target of producing 125 plants per month.”

    It is expected that 500 Medical Oxygen Plants will be installed within three months. Each such plant can cater to 190 patients at a flow rate of 5 LPM and charge 195 cylinders per day. The oxygen plant is designed for a capacity of 1,000 litres per minute (LPM).

    Medical Oxygen Plant (MOP) technology is capable of generating oxygen with 93±3% concentration which can be directly supplied to hospital beds or can be used to fill medical oxygen cylinders. It utilizes the Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) technique and Molecular Sieve (Zeolite) technology to generate oxygen directly from atmospheric air.

    ALSO READ | Double masking or N95 mask must to keep mutant variants at bay The technology was developed by the Defence Bioengineering and Electromedical Laboratory of DRDO for On‐Board Oxygen Generation for Light Combat Aircraft, Tejas. The technology has been transferred to M/s Tata Advanced Systems Limited, Bengaluru, and M/s Trident Pneumatics Pvt. Ltd., Coimbatore, who will be producing 380 plants for installation across various hospitals in the country. The other 120 plants of 500 LPM capacity will be produced by industries working with the Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun, belonging to CSIR.

    With such plants on sites, medical oxygen will be available in hospitals in urban and rural areas, especially at high altitudes and inaccessible remote areas, in a cost-effective manner.

    MOP has already been installed at some of the Army sites in the North East and Leh-Ladakh region. The plant complies with International Standards like ISO 1008, European, US, and Indian Pharmacopeia. Site preparation for 5 plants to be installed in Delhi/NCR region has already been initiated.

    Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has appreciated DRDO for using the MOP technology to generate much-needed oxygen for Covid patients which will help in overcoming the present crisis.

  • Dalai Lama contributes to PM-CARES Fund to strengthen India’s fight against COVID-19

    By PTI
    DHARAMSHALA: Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Tuesday announced to make a contribution to the PM-CARES Fund to strengthen India’s fight against the “alarming COVID-19 surge”.

    “I have been following the continuing challenge that the Covid-19 pandemic has been posing across the world, including in India, with concern,” he said in a statement.

    “At this critical time, during this alarming Covid-19 surge, I have asked the Dalai Lama Trust to make a donation to the PM-CARES Fund as a token of our solidarity with fellow Indian brothers and sisters,” he added.

    “May I take this opportunity to express my deep appreciation for all the efforts that are being made to tackle this devastating pandemic, especially by those courageously working on the frontline. I pray that the pandemic threat will end soon,” the spiritual leader said.

    With 3,23,144 people testing positive for coronavirus infection in a day, India’s total tally of COVID-19 cases has climbed to 1,76,36,307, while the national recovery rate has further dropped to 82.54 per cent, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.

    The Centre had set up the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund in March 2020 with the primary objective to deal with any kind of emergency situation like the one currently posed by the COVID-19 outbreak and provide relief to those affected.

  • 47 UP districts to get oxygen plants under PM CARES fund for COVID-19 patients

    By PTI
    LUCKNOW: As many as 47 of the 75 districts in Uttar Pradesh, including Lucknow, will get medical oxygen plants under the PM CARES Fund to overcome the oxygen shortage faced by COVID-19 patients, a government release said.

    UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath thanked the Centre for the step, and said that the move will prove to be a milestone regarding uninterrupted supply of medical oxygen.

    In a statement issued here, a UP government spokesperson said oxygen plants will be set up in Lucknow, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Agra, Aligarh, Prayagraj, Meerut, Mathura, Gautam Buddh Nagar, Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Jhansi, Moradabad and in other cities of the state.

    The spokesperson also informed that CM Adityanath has taken cognisance of some hospitals pasting notices about shortage of oxygen, and said that these incidents be thoroughly probed.

    “If the notice is pasted only to create fear in the minds of the people, then strict action should be taken against such hospitals,” the CM ordered during a review meeting.

  • 551 oxygen generation plants to be set up in govt hospitals through PM Cares Fund: PMO

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: The Centre on Sunday announced that 551 medical oxygen generation plants will be installed in government hospitals across India under the PM Cares funds, amid a massive shortage of the crucial supply of oxygen that has kept hospitals treating COVID-19 patients on tenterhooks for the last several days.

    These plants will boost oxygen availability at the district level, assured the government as an aggressive second wave of coronavirus has overwhelmed hospitals with a large number of patients in need  of supplemental oxygen.

    An in-principle approval was given for the Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) oxygen generation plants under the funds, said the Union government and added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has directed that these plants should be made functional as soon as possible.

    However, the funds allocated for the purpose was not disclosed.

    ALSO READ: India set to import portable oxygen generation plants from Germany

    These dedicated plants are set to be established in identified government hospitals in district headquarters in various states and the procurement will be done through the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

    The PM Cares fund had earlier this year allocated Rs 201.58 crores for installation of additional 162 oxygen plants in government hospitals but the ministry recently said that only 33 such plants have been installed.

    The basic aim behind establishing such plants in government hospitals in the district headquarters is to further strengthen the public health system and ensure that each of these hospitals has a captive oxygen generation facility, said the Centre.

    ALSO READ: Registration on CoWIN must for those between 18 and 45 years to get vaccine shot

    Such an in-house captive oxygen generation facility would address the day-to-day medical oxygen needs of these hospitals and the district, said the Centre. In addition, the liquid medical oxygen would serve  as a “top up” to the captive oxygen generation.

    “Such a system will go a long way in ensuring that government hospitals in the districts do not face sudden disruption of oxygen supplies and have access to adequate uninterrupted oxygen supply to manage the Covid-19 patients and other patients needing such support,” noted a statement by the ministry.

    India is struggling with a second wave of the pandemic with more than 3,00,000 daily new coronavirus cases being reported in the past few days.

    Several hospitals in the national capital are grappling with severe shortage of medical oxygen.

    While some hospitals have managed to make short-term arrangements, there is no immediate end to the crisis in sight.

    (With PTI inputs)

  • Delhi HC to hear plea in April to declare PM CARES Fund a ‘State’ to ensure transparency

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday said it will hear in April, a plea seeking to declare the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund) a ‘State’ under the Constitution to ensure transparency in its functioning.

    A bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jasmeet Singh said it will hear this petition along with another pending petition filed by the same petitioner seeking to declare PM CARES a ‘public authority’ under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

    The court, which listed both the petitions for hearing on April 23, said it was not inclined to issue notice on this plea as the Centre was already represented through counsel and said they may file their written submissions.

    Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, said the issue require proper hearing and the same petitioner has filed another related petition and both the pleas be heard together. Petitioner Samyak Gangwal, represented through senior advocate Shyam Divan, sought to declare PM CARES Fund a ‘State’ under Article 12 of the Constitution and to direct the fund to disclose its audit reports on the PM CARES website periodically.

    It also sought direction to the fund to disclose every quarter, on the PM CARES website, the details of the donations received by it which shall include each donor’s names. “Further, the details ought to be classified under the following heads – total donations received from individuals, private companies, Public Sector Undertaking, proprietorships, political parties, NGOs, Trusts and so on,” the plea said, adding that quarterly details of utilisation of the funds be also disclosed on the website.

    In support of his contention that the PM CARES Fund is a ‘State’, the petitioner said it was formed by the Prime Minister on March 27, 2020 for a noble purpose, that is, to extend assistance to the citizens of India in the wake of the public health emergency — the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic.

    The Trustees of the fund are the Prime Minister, Defence Minister, Home Minister and the Finance Minister and immediately after the formation of the fund, the Centre through its high government functionaries represented that the fund was set up and operated by the Government of India.

    “The Representations also included the use of government resources such as- use of ‘.gov.in’ domain name, State Emblem of India and the name ‘Prime Minister’ and its abbreviation on the PM Cares Fund website and in other official and unofficial communications. Further, the official address of the PM CARES Fund was stated to be the Prime Minister’s Office South Block, New Delhi,” it said.

    Based on these representations, huge donations were received by the PM CARES Fund and as per the information provided on its website during the financial year 2019-20, an amount of Rs 3076.62 crore was collected merely within four days.

    The petitioner said he believes that the reliefs sought by him will ensure transparency and accountability in the fund’s functioning and will ensure that monies received by the PM CARES Fund are only used for the noble causes for which they were donated.

    “The petitioner is not attributing or even alleging any wrongdoing whatsoever on the part of the present Ex-Officio Trustees of the PM CARES Fund. However, since the PM CARES Fund’s Trustees are high government functionaries, it is essential that checks and balances envisioned in Part III of the Constitution are put in the place on the functioning of the fund to extinguish any chance of an allegation of ‘quid pro quo’,” the plea said.

    In his alterative prayers, Gangwal has sought to direct the Centre to publicise that the PM CARES Fund is not a fund of the Government of India and to restrain PM CARES from using ‘Prime Minister of India’ or ‘Prime Minister’, including its abbreviations its name, on its website, Trust Deed and other official or unofficial communications and advertisements.

  • 100 former civil servants raise questions over transparency in PM-CARES Fund

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: A group of 100 former civil servants wrote an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday raising questions over transparency in the PM-CARES Fund.

    They said it is necessary that, for reasons of probity and adherence to standards of public accountability, the financial details of receipts and expenditures be made available in order to avoid doubts of wrongdoing.

    “We have been keenly following the ongoing debate about the Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations, or ‘PM-CARES’, — a fund created for the benefit of people affected by the COVID pandemic.

    ALSO READ: Centre seeks dismissal of review petition on PM CARES Fund

    Both the purpose for which it has been created as well as the way it has been administered have left a number of questions unanswered,” they said in the letter.

    “It is essential that the position and stature of the Prime Minister is kept intact by ensuring total transparency in all dealings the Prime Minister is associated with,” they said.

    The letter was signed by former IAS officers Anita Agnihotri, S P Ambrose, Sharad Behar, Sajjad Hassan, Harsh Mander, P Joy Oommen, Aruna Roy, former diplomats Madhu Bhaduri, K P Fabian, Deb Mukharji, Sujatha Singh and former IPS officers A S Dulat, P G J Nampoothiri and Julio Ribeiro among others.

    ALSO READ: Congress demands account of foreign donations received by PM CARES Fund

    In March last year, the Centre set up the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) Fund with the primary objective to deal with any kind of emergency situation like the one currently posed by the COVID-19 outbreak and provide relief to those affected.

  • Article :- It is possible if Modi is there A total of 47 thousand ventilators available in the country in the last 70 years Purchase of 50,000 ventilators from PM Cares Fund

    On the board of the (PMNRF)Prime Minister National Relief Fund – the Prime Minister, the President of the Congress Party, are representatives of private industries. On the board of PM Cares: Prime Minister, Finance Minister, Home Minister, Defense Minister – all are officials.

    Who will audit PM Cares?

    The Modi government appointed M / s SARC & Associates as the auditor of PMNRF at the end of the financial year 2017-18. The Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund is being audited from the year 2018-19. It will also audit PM Cares.

    Let us tell you that the opposition has been constantly raising questions about the PM Cares Fund. There is a continuous demand for its audit from the Congress. The fund was also challenged in the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court rejected a petition challenging the constitutional validity of the formation of the PM Cares Fund to deal with epidemics such as the corona virus.

    Where was PM Cares Fund’s money used?

    In the midst of the growing infection of the corona virus, the PM Cares fund was created. On the call of PM Modi, the country’s special to the common people donated fiercely. The Prime Minister’s Office has informed that Rs 3100 crore has been allocated from this fund for the fight against Corona.

    Regarding the use of PM Cares Fund, in this report it was revealed that Rs 2,000 crore 50,000 Made in India ventilators were given. One thousand crore rupees was given for the welfare of the migrants. Hundred crore rupees were given to make the vaccine. There were first 47,000 ventilators in the country. 50,000 ventilators came into the country from PM Cares.

    The special thing is that the Prime Minister National Relief Fund (PMNRF) was formed by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, although its managing committee has always included the President of the Congress Party. When the PMNRF Fund was created, which people were included in its managing committee.

    1) Prime Minister

    2) President of National Congress Party of India.

    3) Deputy Prime Minister.

    4) Finance Minister.

    5) A representative of Tata Trustees.

    6) Representative of industry and commerce to be elected by FICCI.

    However, from time to time, new members have been added to it. In 1985, there came a time when the responsibility of managing this fund was handed over to the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister was also empowered to make him the Secretary of the Fund to whom he would have the right to operate the bank accounts of the Fund. That is, this fund started to be fully run by PMNRF. It is to be noted that this decision was taken when Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister in charge of this fund.

    Now, let’s talk about Kakru-Vishwakrishwas. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set up the Kakru-Presidents Fund to make public contributions to fight the Corona epidemic. The donations under this will be used to provide relief to people affected by the corona virus. Other members of this fund include Defense Minister, Home Minister and Finance Minister. Apart from this, people doing good work in science, health, law and public sectors have also been appointed as its members. With the formation of this fund, famous celebrities as well as common people have made their contributions in lakhs.

     However, a question arises again and again that despite the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund, why was the PM Cares Fund started? A magazine has claimed that the Prime Minister of the PM is more democratic than the National Relief Fund. Therefore, it would also not be wrong to say that the PMNRF -Vishwashtram is more transparent than the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund. There is also a provision for the establishment of an advisory board in PM Care Fund which can house medical professionals and healthcare professionals, academics, economists and lawyers. Politics also started with the Kakru-Nations. While the Congress is not telling it as transparent, the BJP says that the Congress is unhappy with it because there is no place for the Congress President in it.

    TAG : – Defence Minister, Finance Minister, Home minister, PM Cares Fund, PMNRF, Prime Minister, Prime Minister National Relief Fund, Tata Trustees, Ventilators