The Supreme Court recently clarified that the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES Fund), being a public charitable trust, does not necessitate an audit by the Comptroller & Auditor General (CAG) of India. Alongside this, the court also rebuffed any proposal to transfer monies from the PM CARES Fund to the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).
Comparison between PM-CARES and NDRF
Drawing a distinction between the two funds, the Court declared that while the NDRF is legislated to be audited by the CAG according to the Disaster Management Act, 2005, a public charitable fund like PM-CARES does not have this requirement. However, the PM-CARES Fund will be audited by an independent auditor. Additionally, the PM CARES Fund, being a registered charitable trust under the Registration Act, 1908, does not receive direct budgetary support or government money unlike the NDRF, which is formed under Section 46 of the DM Act of 2005 and receives provisions from Central and State Budgets.
Voluntary Contributions to NDRF
In its judgement, the Court mentioned that there is no legislative ban on individuals making voluntary contributions to the NDRF under Section 46(1)(b) of the DM Act.
No Need for New National Plan
The Court also rejected the demand for a directive instructing the government to initiate a new National Disaster Management Plan under the DM Act to tackle the Covid-19 crisis. The bench asserted that all aspects related to epidemic management, including preparedness, containment measures, response, and mitigation, are comprehensively addressed in the National Disaster Management Plan, 2019.
No Further Intervention in Relief Standards
Additionally, the court refused to interfere with the “minimum standards of relief” and the necessary guidelines issued by the government under Section 12 of the DM Act, leaving the standards to be set by the National Authority.
Background of PM-CARES Fund
The PM-CARES Fund was established to deal with any emergency or distress situations like the Covid-19 pandemic. The government authorities invoked their respective powers under the Disaster Management (DM) Act, 2005 to respond to the Covid-19 outbreak in the nation. Despite this, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) maintains that the PM-CARES Fund is not a public authority under the ambit of the Right to Information Act (RTI), 2005. It also denied disclosing the number of applications and appeals related to PM-CARES, raising questions over its transparency and accountability.
Funds Collected and Utilization
According to the data released on the Fund’s website, it collected more than ₹3,076 crore within the first five days since its establishment, which also constitutes foreign donations. The same source claims that ₹3,100 crore have been sanctioned from the PM-CARES Fund for spending on ventilators, migrant worker welfare, and vaccine research and development.
National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP)
The NDMP provides a comprehensive framework and direction to government agencies for managing all stages of the disaster management cycle. The primary goal of this plan is to enhance India’s resilience to disasters and substantially reduce the harm caused during and in the aftermath of both natural and man-made disasters. Initially released in 2016, the NDMP has since been updated in 2016, 2018, and 2019, with the 2019 version incorporating the Prime Minister’s ten-point agenda for Disaster Risk Reduction.
