The Finance Secretary Shri Ashok Lavasa, who is also the Chairperson of the Swachh Bharat Kosh (SBK), received today a cheque of ₹ 25 crores towards the SBK by Shri P.V. Ramesh Babu, CMD of Rural Electric Corporation (REC) Limited as part of REC’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Shri Parmeshwaran Iyer, Secretary, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation and Shri Vivek Joshi, Administrator, SBK and senior officers of REC were also present on this occasion.

REC has also contributed ₹ 25 Crore towards this noble cause earlier in August 2016, thus making a total contribution of ₹ 50 Crore to the Kosh. Apart from this, the Corporation has also constructed 194 toilets during the current fiscal. REC is committed to supporting the Government of India’s mission for Swachh Bharat. As a responsible Corporate Citizen, the cause of nation building has always been high on REC’s priorities. As a step in this direction, REC had, during the FY 2014-15 and 2015-16, constructed a total of 12,292 toilets. These toilets are spread across 33 districts in 6 states.

The SBK was set up to attract CSR funds from corporate sector and contribution from individual philanthropists to achieve the objective of Clean India (Swachh Bharat) through “Swachh Bharat Abhiyan” by the year 2019, the 150th year of birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The SBK is to be used to achieve the objective of improving cleanliness levels in rural and urban areas, including in schools.  The allocation from the SBK is being used to supplement departmental resources for such activities. All donations towards Swachh Bharat Kosh are eligible for deduction of 100% from the total Income Tax. The contributions to SBK can also be included by companies towards CSR under the Companies Act, 2013.

Rural Electric Corporation (REC) Limited is an enterprise of the Government of India under the Ministry of Power, mandated to  provide financing for the power sector development across the value chain in the field of generation, transmission, distribution and above all, renewable energy development. REC is the coordinating agency for implementing flagship programs of the government in power sector that include Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana scheme, the Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY) programme and several other initiatives of the government to ensure “Power for All”.

Tax deduction for donations to Swachh Bharat Kosh enables corporate CSR inclusion and supports cleanliness projects. Contributions to the Swachh Bharat Kosh are eligible for a 100% deduction from total income tax, and may be included by companies towards their Corporate Social Responsibility obligations under the Companies Act, 2013; the SBK is used to fund cleanliness and sanitation projects in rural and urban areas, supplementing departmental resources.