HDFC Mutual Fund has filed a draft offer document with SEBI to launch its third series of three-year capital protection oriented fund - HDFC Charity Fund for Cancer Cure, a joint initiative between HDFC MF and Indian Cancer Society to fight cancer.
However, this time, the fund house has decided to launch two plans under this scheme – arbitrage plan and debt plan. Since arbitrage fund is considered as equity fund for taxation purpose, dividends from such investments are considered as tax-free after a year in the hands of investors. This will help the fund house pay out handsome dividends from realized gains.
The minimum application amount is Rs. 1 lakh. The fund house doesn’t charge any investment management or advisory fee for managing this fund. The fund will be listed on BSE and NSE post the NFO.
The scheme enables investors to donate either 50% or 100% of dividends declared by the fund to the corpus of Indian Cancer Society Fund which is approved as public charitable trust for treatment of cancer. Such donations are eligible for claiming deduction under Section 80G of Income Tax. The Indian Cancer Society will issue donation receipt along with its 80G certificate to avail tax deduction.
At the end of the year, donor investors will be given a report on the patients who are supported with funds, by name and with details of type of cancer, hospital, treating doctor, cost of treatment, amount disbursed, outcome if known etc.
The fund house had collected Rs. 77 crore in the first series launched in March 2011. In the second series launched in March 2014, the fund house collected Rs. 175 crore.
As on March 2014, this fund has benefited 517 cancer patients from 20 states across the country. 80% of these patients are less than 30 years of age.
