Fact Check: Has Wipro's Azim Premji donated Rs 50,000 crore towards the Coronavirus fight?

Disclaimer: This fact check is based on the analysis of a clarification issued to another news organization. 

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Details: Coronavirus outbreak has brought the world to a standstill and India has entered a 21-day lockdown till April 14 in order to break the contact chain and stop the spread of the virus. The virus has claimed more than 17 lives, with over 850 cases in the country.

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Many people have started donating money to various charities and also to government funds for research in order to stop the spread of the virus. Vedanta's Anil Agarwal has pledged Rs 100 crore, while many MPs have pledged their MPLAD funds.

On Friday morning, however, social media websites and chat applications were abuzz with reports that Wipro Chairman & promoter Azim Premji had donated Rs 50,000 crore - an almighty sum - to charity to help purchase equipment required to fight coronavirus.

However, these reports are incorrect and seem to have been confused with another donation of Premji which took place around the same time last year. In 2019, Premji had kept aside 34% of this stake in the firm, amounting to Rs 52,000 crore for his foundation involved in philanthropy. In a statement to a news channel, Wipro clarified that the announcement of donation was made in March 2019 and not this week.

(READ: Azim Premji Earmarks Economic Benefits Of 34 Percent Of His Wipro Shares To Entity Involved In Philanthropy)

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