New Delhi, Mar 29 (UNI) Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday urged the Rajya Sabha Members to contribute at least Rs one crore initially from their MPLADS funds to supplement the Government's efforts in the fight against the Novel Coronavirus pandemic.
In a letter to all MPs, Mr Naidu referred to the extra-ordinary situation arising from the outbreak of COVID-19 and the plethora of measures being undertaken by the Government and other stakeholders, including the private sector, to control and mitigate the situation for the people.
Highlighting the requirement of enormous amount of resources-financial, material and human, to successfully combat COVID-19, the Rajya Sabha Chairman said the Centre has been pooling financial resources from various avenues to augment the availability of funds at the national, state and district levels.
Observing that Upper House Members' prompt action will greatly help India in it's fight against COVID-19, he requested the MPs to give their consent to Centrally earmark an amount of at least Rs one crore initially from their MPLAD Scheme for the Financial Year 2020-21.
He also pointed out that the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation has suitably amended the relevant guidelines to allow one-time dispensation under the MPLADS, for managing the COVID-19 crisis.
Meanwhile, the Vice President also appealed to the individuals to come forward and contribute to the PM-CARES Fund to strengthen the disaster management capacities.
While appreciating various civil society organisations for providing help to the needy and poor in this hour of crisis, he appealed to people to stay safe and healthy and strictly follow the guidelines issued by the Government.
Appealing to one and all to take care of the stranded migrant labour in their areas, Mr Naidu requested the state governments, voluntary and philanthropic bodies to provide them with food and shelter. He also urged the agencies, which hired the migrant labour, to come to their rescue.
The Vice President also spoke to Minister for State for Labour Santosh Kumar Gangwar and to Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba, and enquired about the coordination with various state governments on the issue of migrant labourers.
UNI AKS RJ 1808