State Oil Companies To Contribute Rs 1000 Crore To PM-Cares Fund

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State oil companies will together contribute Rs 1000 crore to the PM-CARES fund to fight the spread of Coronavirus and also offer Rs 5 lakh to the family of any worker involved in cooking gas distribution in the event of his death due to Covid-19 infection.

“I am grateful, and delighted, to announce that the oil & gas establishment is ready with a contribution of ₹1031.29 crore by the PSUs and other oil JVs for the PM-Cares Fund. Additionally, ₹61 cr. has been contributed by colleagues of PSUs from their salaries for the #PMCARES,” Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Twitter on Monday.

Contributions from several companies and individuals are making their way to the fund to strengthen India’s battle against the coronavirus that has already infected more than a thousand people in the country and forced the government to introduce a nationwide lockdown.

Oil marketing companies have also announced measures for the welfare of those involved in the distribution of cooking gas as they are increasingly at risk of exposure to the virus.

“Oil marketing companies- IOCL, BPCL and HPCL today announced an ex-gratia amount of ₹5 lakh each, as a one-time special measure, in the unfortunate case of demise of personnel like show-room staff, godown-keepers, mechanics and delivery boys, attending duty in the LPG distributorship chain, due to the infection and impact of Covid-19,” an Oil Ministry statement said.

Cooking gas, or the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), is an essential commodity whose distribution is permitted by the government during the lockdown. Its demand has rocked in the past week as consumers scrambled to secure supplies.

(With inputs from IANS)