PM relief fund account opened for Turkiye earthquake victims

KARACHI: In a bid to provide support to the earthquake victims in Turkiye, State Bank of Pakistan has opened a fund account on Wednesday for collection of donations.

The SBP announced it after the government notified establishment of a relief fund, namely, ‘Prime Minister’s Relief Fund for Türkiye Earthquake Victims,’ in an effort to provide the Turkish government and people with the much-needed support as they are dealing with the devastation brought on by the earthquake.

The fund will accept donations/contributions both from domestic and international sources. National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) will administer the fund while the Accountant General Pakistan Revenue (AGPR) will maintain the accounts.

All the commercial and microfinance banks shall open the fund’s account and shall receive donations in forms of cash, cheques, pay orders and demand drafts at all their branches across the country, stated the SBP circular.

Donors may make their contributions to the fund in cash at any branch of any bank operating in Pakistan, which shall transfer the consolidated amount of such donations to the fund account at SBP through real time gross settlement system (RTGS) on daily basis. Similarly, the donations can also be deposited at any of the field offices of SBP Banking Services Corporation.

People can make their contributions to the fund by dropping crossed cheques in the name of the fund in their respective bank’s drop box. All banks shall make available drop box facility at their selected branches for donors where donators may drop their crossed cheques in favor of the fund. The banks shall debit the customer’s account and transfer the amount of such proceeds daily on consolidated basis through RTGS system to the SBP, stated the SBP circular.