51 gifts put up for auction on Uphaar portal fetch Rs 1.14 crore

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Chandigarh, March 5

Inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s idea of auctioning the gifts received and using the donations for public welfare, the ‘CM Uphaar’ portal, created by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, has received a good response. A total of 51 gifts put up for auction through the portal have fetched Rs 1.14 crore.

Additional Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister and Director-General, Information, Public Relations, Languages and Culture, Dr Amit Agrawal, said a bid of Rs 21 lakh had been placed for the 3D sculpture of the Chief Minister.

A bid has been placed for Rs 6.41 lakh for the sculpture of Arjun Rath, Rs 5.80 lakh for the sculpture of Kamakhya Devalya and Rs 1.75 lakh for the sculpture of Ram Janmabhoomi temple.

Agrawal said the amount received from the auction of gifts would be deposited in the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund and would be spent on public welfare works. He said the CM had decided to auction the gifts presented by social organisations or individuals as a mark of respect during various programmes.

“In the first phase, 51 gifts were auctioned till February 28. The base amount of each gift was mentioned on the portal. Soon after the completion of the auction process of the first phase, the Chief Minister will present the gifts to the bidders,” said Agrawal, adding that if the bidder so desired, he could also collect the gift by courier.

Notably, the PM had organised an auction on the occasion of his 72nd birthday, in which he had e-auctioned about 1,200 gifts received from across the country. The funds collected through this were used in the Namami Gange Mission.