Days after rejecting the application of Mother Teresa-founded Missionaries of Charity (MoC) and with over 15,000 applications pending, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday extended the validity of licences of NGOs to collect foreign donations by three months till March 31.
Only those NGOs whose renewal applications are pending can avail the benefits of the extension while organisations like the MOC will not be eligible as their applications for renewal of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act registration has already been rejected.
According to the public notice, the MHA said it has "in public interest,...decided to extend the validity of the FCRA registration certificates of NGOs up to March 31, 2022 or till the date of disposal of their renewal applications, whichever is earlier, in respect of only those entities that fulfil certain criteria".
The NGOs with FCRA registration certificates expiring between September 29, 2020 and March 31, 2022 and that have applied for renewal on the FCRA portal before the expiry of the certificates, in accordance with rule 12 of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Rules, 2011, are eligible for the benefits.
"All FCRA registered associations are therefore advised to take note of the fact that in case of refusal of the application for renewal of certificate of registration, the validity of the certificate shall be deemed to have expired on the date of refusal of the application of renewal and the association shall not be eligible either to receive foreign contribution or utilise the foreign contribution received," it said.
According to MHA, 22,762 NGOs are registered under the FCRA and the renewal applications of about 6,500 have so far been processed.
On December 25, the MHA rejected the renewal application of the MoC for not meeting the eligibility conditions under the FCRA following "some adverse inputs".
The MHA decision had led to accusations from the Opposition of squeezing the charity organisation.
On Thursday, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik directed all district collectors to ensure that no unit of the MoC in the state faces any financial crisis. If necessary, Patnaik directed, they should use the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to help the MoC.
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