Amidst online smear campaigns discouraging people from sending funds to the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund, donations poured in from various quarters, with celebrities and institutions offering lakhs of rupees and some even pledging to construct houses for those who lost everything in the devastating landslides that hit Kerala's Wayanad.
The Kerala police on Thursday launched an investigation into an alleged social media campaign against Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's Facebook post requesting help for the people affected by the landslides in Wayanad district. The campaign was aimed at motivating people to reject the CM's appeal for disaster relief, it said.
Tamil actors, including Kamal Haasan, Surya, Vikram, Karthi and Jyothika, donated to the CMDRF.
Malayalam stars Mammootty, his son Dulquer Salman, Fahad Faasil, and Nazriya, among others, also donated to the relief fund for Wayanad.
While Haasan donated Rs 25 lakh, Jyothika, Surya, and Karthi together donated Rs 50 lakh.
Mammootty donated Rs 20 lakh and Dulquer gave Rs 15 lakh. Fahad and Nazriya donated Rs 25 lakh.
Noted filmmaker Anand Patwardhan on Thursday donated Rs 2,20,000 which he bagged as prize money in the recently concluded 16th International Documentary and Short Film Festival of Kerala.
While all the state ministers have decided to donate one month's salary, the Communist Party of India, a major ally of the ruling Left Front government has also decided that all its elected members to the assembly as well as Parliament will donate their one month's salary.
United Democratic Front convenor and senior Congress leader MM Hassan on Thursday donated his one month's salary to the CMDRF.
LDF MLA KT Jaleel has donated Rs 5 lakh.
While, the Kerala State Beverages Corporation donated Rs 1 crore to the CMDRF, the Kerala State Small Industries Association has offered to construct 10 houses on one acre of land, which will be identified later, and hand them over to those who lost their residences.
Aster DM Healthcare Group, which operates Wayanad's Dr Moopen's Medical College where numerous landslide victims have been admitted, has announced that the treatment will be given free of cost.
The hospital group has also announced that it will contribute Rs 1.5 crore to the CMDRF and also pledged Rs 2.5 crore to construct houses for the landslide victims.
The VPS group which operates the Lakeshore hospital in Kochi has offered medical supplies worth Rs 1 crore.
The Communist Party of India-Marxist's Tamil Nadu and Tripura state committees have donated Rs 10 lakh each to the CMDRF.
The Ayurveda Medical Association has handed over a cheque for Rs 10 lakh to the CMDRF.
Senior vice president of IBM Dinesh Nirmal has donated Rs 25 lakh towards the disaster relief fund.
Apart from these, numerous known and unknown persons have donated various amounts to the CMDRF.
Vijayan had made a public appeal to contribute to the Chief Minister's Disaster Relief Fund to help the survivors of the landslides rebuild their lives and livelihoods.
