Chennai: Chief Minister M K Stalin, who went around Chennai overseeing the relief and rehabilitation work at various places on Friday, said that Cyclone Michaung had hit the lives of over a crore people and that he was donating a month’s salary to the Chief Minister’s Public Relief Fund, thus setting an example for the common people to follow.
The disaster brought about by the downpour from December 2 to 4 was for the entire State and not just the districts of Chennai, Thiruvallur, Kanchipuram and Chengalpattu that bore the brunt of nature’s fury, Stalin said, requesting the people to be generous in donating to the Chief Minister’s Fund as the relief to be provided for the affected people was enormous.
Though some parts of Chennai continued to reel under the impact of the unprecedented deluge, relief work continued at a fast pace with top officials, Ministers and people’s representatives overseeing the operations, with fears of another bout of rain hanging over the city that was still limping back to normal.
Members of the Tamil Nadu Secretariat Association donated a day’s salary to the relief fund even as the Secretariat staff were fully involved in the relief work carried out at various places, while the Chief Minister requested all MLAs and MPs of both the Houses to make their contributions to the fund.
Stalin said that rains that battered the State, particularly the four affected districts, was the highest ever recorded in 47 years and a major disaster was averted only because the government had laid out storm water drainage in most of the places in advance and had also taken precautionary measures after the meteorological office came out with the forecast about the cyclone.
People who were displaced from their homes have been put up in relief camps where all basic necessities were being taken care of with volunteers and NGOs reaching out to them with relief material like food, clothing and so on.
Since the government had made arrangements to receive the relief material from the individual and NGO donors and supply them to the needy at specific locations, the benevolent hearts have been asked to contact 7397766657 on WhatsApp for delivering their relief material.
Other philanthropists, industries and members of the public were requested to donate to the Chief Minister’s Fund and told that they would get 100 per cent income tax exemption under Section 80 (G) of the IT Act. NRIs too would get exemption under Section 50 of the FCRA.
Donations could be made through all forms of payments like ECS, RTGS and NEFT to account number 117201000000070 of the Indian Overseas Bank branch in the Secretariat with the IFSC IOBA0001172. For donations made under Corporate Social Responsibility, the account number is 117201000017908 in the same bank. Payments could also be made through UPI systems.
The Formula Four Chennai Street Circuit night car race that was scheduled to be held on December 9 and 10 has been postponed to a later date and DMK’s ambitious Youth Wing conference planned for December 17 at Salem has also been put off to a later date.
