The corpus of the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund rose 17.8% from ₹7,173.03 crore in 2023-24 to ₹8,452.07 crore in 2024-25, even as domestic donations fell by nearly 30% and foreign donations by over 18% in the same period, according to its audited statements for financial years 2023-24 and 2024-25 released on Monday.
The increase in the corpus was driven mainly by substantial interest income on fixed deposits, large refunds from implementing agencies, and negligible or just 0.01% expenditure during FY 2024-25, according to an analysis of the audited statement available on the PM CARES website.
Interest income, refunds drive rise in PM CARES corpus
In FY 2024-25, total domestic donations (net of refunds) to the PM CARES Fund stood at approximately ₹479.05 crore, compared to about ₹681.81 crore in FY 2023-24. In the same period, foreign donations (net of refunds) were approximately ₹0.93 crore, down from about ₹1.14 crore in FY 2023-24 .
Despite the fall in donations, the fund received substantial income from its deposits. Interest on fixed deposits rose to ₹469.38 crore in FY 2024-25 (an amount of ₹6,641.57 crore was parked in fixed deposits at the beginning of the year).
The fund also received ₹324.66 crore as refunds from implementing agencies — unspent or excess money returned — compared to ₹84.31 crore in 2023-24. Another ₹13.49 lakh was received as refund of TDS on interest on fixed deposits from banks.
Overall, the fund received ₹1,279.91 crore during 2024-25, excluding its opening balance. Its opening balance was ₹7,173.03 crore, comprising ₹531.47 crore in savings-bank accounts and ₹6,641.57 crore in fixed deposits. By 31 March 2025, the savings-bank balance had risen to ₹605.41 crore, while fixed deposits stood at ₹7,846.65 crore.
PM CARES expenditure falls 94% in a year
The fund’s expenditure during the year was comparatively small. It recorded payments of ₹87.85 lakh for the PM CARES for Children Scheme in FY 2024-25, compared to ₹15.38 crore in 2023-24 — a sharp decline of about 94%. The ₹87.85 lakh spent on the scheme in 2024-25 amounted to just 0.01% of the fund’s ₹8,452.07 crore corpus.
Transparency activist Anjali Bhardwaj, who has previously sought greater disclosure on the PM CARES Fund through RTIs and courts, said in a post on X that the fund’s 2024-25 audit statement raised questions over its utilisation and transparency. “Utilised only 0.01% of available ₹8,452 crore! Why is the PMCARES Fund keeping such large sums of money idle? ₹324 crore was refunded by implementing agencies-- but no info on what these payments were for and why these were refunded? Which agency refunded? Were refunds done to evade accountability for faulty equipment? Why have accompanying notes to the audit report not been uploaded?,” she asked.
Fund audited for FY24, FY25; statements uploaded
For FY 2023-24 and 2024-25, the fund was audited by Mumbai-based chartered accountants firm KKC & Associates LLP and signed on August 7, 2026 ; audited financial statements were uploaded on PM CARES website on Monday. The fund was audited by Delhi-based SARC & Associates for FY 2022-23 and audited financial statements were uploaded on the website in December 2024.
The Union government set up the PM CARES Fund on March 27, 2020, to deal with emergency and distress situations, including the Covid-19 pandemic, and provide relief to those affected. Registered as a public charitable trust in New Delhi, the fund is chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with the defence, home and finance ministers as ex-officio trustees. It receives only voluntary contributions and no budgetary support.
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The fund has financed emergency healthcare measures, including oxygen plants and ventilators in central and state government hospitals. It also launched the PM CARES for Children scheme in May 2021 to support children who lost parents or legal guardians to Covid-19, including through financial, educational and health care assistance.
In June 2020, the Prime Minister’s Office said the fund did not qualify as a “public authority” under the Right to Information Act, 2005, following RTIs seeking details of its functioning and finances. The government has maintained that PM CARES receives voluntary contributions and no money from state budgets.