The All India Mahila Congress on Tuesday handed over cheques/drafts for Rs 25 lakh collected for relief work in Kerala to Congress President Rahul Gandhi, the party said.

Rahul Gandhi had appealed to the Congress family to help in every possible way, including making donations to the Rajiv Gandhi National Relief and Welfare Trust.

"The Mahila Congress delegation led by its President Sushmita Dev met AICC Treasurer Ahmed Patel to hand over the donation money, collected from across India," said a party statement.

"Also, relief material in the form of food and sanitary napkins have been dispatched from various states by the Mahila Congress workers."

Meanwhile, the Kerala government announced on Tuesday that all celebrations organised in government schools, including the School Kalolsavam (arts festival), International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) and those organised by the Tourist Department, will be cancelled for a year.

The funds that were allocated for these celebrations will now be donated to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF).

This decision was taken by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan before he left to the USA for treatment. 

Music composer AR Rahman on Sunday had pledged Rs 1 crore for relief efforts in Kerala. The composer took to Twitter to announce that he and his team of artists have donated the money to the CMDRF.

“From my artistes and me touring the USA... To our brothers and sisters of Kerala! May this small offering help in providing you some relief!” he tweeted.

On August 14, the government had announced that it was cancelling all government-organised Onam celebrations in the state and the money allocated for these celebrations would be given to the CMDRF. 

Besides, to aid in post-floods reconstruction, the state government is also mobilising funds from Keralites across the globe. 

With IANS inputs