Apple donates Rs 7 crore for Kerala flood victims

Considering the catastrophic flooding in Kerala, US tech giant Apple on Saturday announced to donate Rs 7 crore towards the ongoing relief work.

"We're heartbroken by the catastrophic flooding in Kerala. Apple is donating Rs 7 crore to support the life saving work Mercy Corps India and the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund are undertaking to support survivors, help those who have been displaced and rebuild homes and schools," the Cupertino-based iPhone maker said in a statement.

Apple has also added support banners to its home page, along with App Store and iTunes Store, allowing customers to donate to Mercy Corps.

"We have also activated a donation button on iTunes and the App Store so customers who wish to donate to Mercy Corps' efforts can do so easily," Apple said.

Apple often uses the iTunes Store and App Stores to raise money for donation during major disasters.

Apple customers can donate $5, $10, $25, $50, $100, or $200 to Mercy Corps using credit and debit cards.

More than 350 people have lost their lives in rains and floods as hundreds began returning home from relief camps, still leaving 8.69 lakh people in 2,787 shelters.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Friday that the deaths began since the monsoon rains started on May 29 but 265 of the casualties were reported from August 8 when torrential downpour triggered the worst flooding in the state in nearly a century.

There have been other companies as well that have donated money for the flood victims. Hyundai India and TVS Motor Company donated Rs 1 crore each to Kerala Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF), while Mercedes Benz-India donated Rs 30 lakh. Beverage alcohol major Diageo India also donated Rs 1 Crore towards CMDRF.

Several other companies have been pitching in to help the victims in other ways. E-commerce companies such as Amazon, Flipkart, Big Basket and Zomato have been partnering with various NGOs to help with the relief work. Google has made available a Person Finder tool to help find missing people in Kerala. Paytm started accepting donations for the CMDRF and collected over Rs 30 crore.

Telecom operators too are trying to help by offering data and voice call benefits to prepaid customers and bill payment extensions to postpaid customers. Idea and Airtel launched missing person services as well.

With IANS inputs