New Delhi, Aug. 19 -- The corpus of the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund rose 17.8% from Rs.7,173.03 crore in 2023-24 to Rs.8,452.07 crore in 2024-25, even as domestic donations fell by nearly 30% and foreign donations by over 18% in the same period, according to its audited statements for financial years 2023-24 and 2024-25 released on Monday.

The increase in the corpus was driven mainly by substantial interest income on fixed deposits, large refunds from implementing agencies, and negligible or just 0.01% expenditure during FY 2024-25, according to an analysis of the audited statement available on the PM CARES website.

In FY 2024-25, total domestic donations (net of refunds) to the...