Domestic donations to PM CARES down by 30% to `479 cr in FY25

Domestic donations to the PM CARES Fund fell by 30% to nearly ₹479 crore during the 2024-2025 fiscal year, while foreign donations declined by 18% to ₹92.8 lakh, according to its latest audit report.

The total balance in the fund stood at ₹8,452 crore as on March 31, 2025, up from ₹7,173 crore a year ago. Of this, ₹7,846 crore was parked in fixed deposits and ₹605 crore in savings bank accounts. Domestic donations received in the 2023-2024 fiscal year stood at ₹681.8 crore, alongside foreign donations totalling ₹1.13 crore. 

The fund spent ₹87.8 lakh on the PM CARES for Children Scheme during 2024-2025, sharply down from ₹15.37 crore in the previous year. Total payments made during 2024-2025 reached ₹87.85 lakh, compared to ₹15.6 crore in the previous fiscal year. 

Audited statements on the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund website show that voluntary domestic contributions peaked at ₹7,184 crore in 2020-2021. Contributions fell to ₹1,896 crore in 2021-2022 before declining further to ₹909 crore in 2022-2023. 

Foreign contributions saw a sharper decline, registering a high of ₹495 crore in 2020-2021, before falling to ₹40 crore and ₹2.57 crore in the subsequent two years. The Modi government established the fund as a public charitable trust to handle emergency or distress situations, such as the Covid pandemic.                -PTI