Use PM CARES’ ₹8,500 Crore Fund for Rural Schools, Says Abhijeet Dipke
Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to consider using the substantial corpus of the PM CARES Fund to improve infrastructure in rural government schools.
Dipke’s remarks came after the latest audited accounts showed that the PM CARES Fund stood at approximately ₹8,452 crore as of March 31, 2025. The corpus had increased from ₹7,173 crore in 2023–24, representing an increase of about 17.8%.
The timing of Dipke’s demand is significant because the fund’s expenditure during 2024–25 was reported at only ₹87.85 lakh. The latest accounts indicate that a substantial portion of the corpus was held in fixed deposits, while another portion remained in savings-bank accounts.
Dipke argued that the contrast between the size of the fund and the condition of some rural schools deserves public attention.
During his recent visits to rural schools in Maharashtra, he said he encountered schools struggling with basic requirements such as drinking water, proper roads, benches and adequate infrastructure.
According to Dipke, local authorities have cited shortage of funds as one reason for inadequate facilities in government schools. He questioned why a large emergency-oriented fund could not, within its legal objectives or through an appropriate policy mechanism, contribute to improving such conditions.
He also put forward a simple calculation to illustrate the potential scale of investment. Assuming that a well-equipped model school costs approximately ₹8 crore, Dipke said that ₹8,500 crore could theoretically finance more than 1,000 such schools.
His proposal is part of the CJP’s broader “School Thik Karo” campaign, which seeks to highlight deficiencies in government-school infrastructure.
Dipke has also used images and videos from his school visits to draw attention to deteriorating buildings and inadequate sanitation facilities. In one recent visit, he questioned why students were seen cleaning classrooms themselves when cleaning staff were reportedly available.
The latest PM CARES accounts provide important context to the debate. The fund’s corpus has continued to grow despite a decline in fresh donations, with interest income and refunds from implementing agencies contributing to the increase.
According to the reported accounts, approximately ₹7,846 crore was parked in fixed deposits and about ₹605 crore was held in savings-bank accounts. This means that the money was not literally sitting as unproductive cash; a large part was invested and generating returns.
That distinction, however, does not eliminate the policy question raised by Dipke: whether a fund created to provide assistance during emergencies should maintain such a large reserve while other areas of public need continue to face funding constraints.
The PM CARES Fund was established in March 2020 during the COVID-19 crisis. Its stated purpose is to provide assistance in emergency situations and support relief and other measures falling within the objectives of the trust.
The fund is managed as a public charitable trust, with the Prime Minister as ex-officio chairperson and the Union ministers of Defence, Home Affairs and Finance as ex-officio trustees.
Dipke’s proposal therefore opens a wider debate rather than merely questioning the size of the fund. It raises the issue of whether accumulated resources should remain primarily available for future emergencies or whether some portion could be directed toward long-term public infrastructure that itself reduces vulnerability during emergencies.
Education infrastructure is particularly relevant to that argument. A school without safe buildings, drinking water, sanitation, roads or adequate classroom facilities can itself become a public-welfare concern, particularly in remote rural communities.
At the same time, PM CARES is specifically structured as an emergency-relief fund, meaning that its resources cannot simply be redirected to unrelated government programmes without considering the trust’s legal framework and stated objectives.
Dipke’s demand is therefore ultimately a question for the fund’s trustees and policymakers: can a portion of the corpus be used for education-related projects that satisfy the fund’s objectives, or should the entire reserve remain available for future emergencies?
For now, the ₹8,452-crore corpus has become the backdrop for a larger political and public debate over priorities.
Dipke’s message is straightforward: if rural children are studying in schools without basic facilities while thousands of crores remain accumulated in an emergency fund, policymakers should examine whether that money can be put to meaningful public use.
“Shouldn’t this money be used for the schools?” is the central question behind his appeal to the Prime Minister.
