Bharti Enterprises commits Rs 100 cr to support initiatives to fight against Covid-19

Telecommunications company Bharti Enterprises, which owns Bharti Airtel and Bharti Infratel, has committed over Rs 100 crore to support the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. 

A significant portion of the money will go to The Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund, the New Delhi headquartered company said in a statement. The rest will be used to procure personal protective equipment such as face masks for doctors, healthcare workers and other essential services personnel, it added. 

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Additionally, the company said it has set up a platform for employees to make voluntary contributions. The companies that Bharti Enterprises owns will match the employee contribution amount and donate it to support Covid-19 initiatives, the statement added.

Several other organisations have also pledged donations to fight the pandemic. 

Infosys Foundation, the corporate social responsibility (CSR) unit of technology major Infosys, said it will donate Rs 100 crore to the PM CARES Fund. Earlier this week, Paytm pledged over $66 million to the fund, while Flipkart subsidiary PhonePe pledged $13 million. 

Additionally, The Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation, both set up by Chinese ecommerce behemoth Alibaba Group founder Jack Ma, donated medical supplies such as Covid-19 testing kits and face masks to India, along with six other countries. 

See: Coronavirus India LIVE Updates

As of Monday, India has at least 1,251 positive Covid-19 cases so far, according to the World Health Organisation data. Of that, 32 people have died and 101 cured, as per the data.