Domestic Poker Sites Step Up CSR Drive to Aid Kerala Flood Victims

The monsoons that hit Kerala in July this year led to the worst floods that have ever been witnessed in the coastal state. Devastation was severe. The official count of deaths is 483, and more than a million people from all the 14 districts had to be evicted from their homes. Floods apart, Kerala also suffered landslides in Wayanad and Idukki, severing the road connect to the state’s hill stations.

As the relief efforts stepped in, a number of multinationals and corporates announced financial and other forms of contribution towards Kerala flood relief. The Indian gaming industry, particularly the domestic poker sites and poker professionals have been equally proactive and have made commendable Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) contributions towards the flood relief assistance.

Premier virtual gaming portal, 9stacks pledged three times the rake generated on the Sunday Stack Tournament ₹3 Lakhs GTD that was hosted on August 19, which amounted to ₹90,900. Fashion photographer and poker player, Sanjay Taneja who cruised to the top in the Sunday Stacks at 9stacks, banking ₹75,750 donated his entire winnings for the cause.

In its official statement, 9stacks informed PokerGuru that, “9stacks along with all the players on the platform raised ₹1,66,650 from rake generated by the Sunday Stacks tournament that took place on the 19th of August 2018, for the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMRDF).”

Meanwhile, Adda52 Rummy organized a flood relief tournament with a prize pool of ₹50,000 on August 31. For every buy-in of ₹50, they donated ₹50 to the flood relief fund.

Binand Sethumadhavan, COO of Adda52 Rummy, a part of Gaussian Networks Pvt. Ltd., which also owns Adda52.com, is a native of Kerala and saw many members of his family stranded in the floods. He was determined to do his part in the rebuilding of the state.

Talking about Adda52 Rummy’s contribution, Sethmadhavan stated, “I felt I had to do something to bring my home state back on its feet. I had no doubt in my mind that the players of Adda52 Rummy would be completely with me in this effort to raise funds for the state. We chose to run a tournament and collected a sizable amount as a contribution which is really from all our players.”

Another popular poker site, MadOverPoker (MOP) contributed a total of ₹36,500. While players Anjar Firoz, Avijit Dutta and Aishwaray Deshmukh who won various tournaments on MOP donated 50% of their winnings to the CMRDF, MOP employees collected daily basic items including medicines, clothes, blanket, food items etc to help the people in need along with the monetary help.

In their official statement, MOP said, “We cannot triumph over nature’s force, but we as a part of a social community can come together in these disturbing times to do all we can.

We recently held a poker tournament where over 10 people were given free tickets, on a 50-50 deal. The winning players, with the tickets, were given 50 percent of the winning amount while the remaining was donated to Kerala flood victims.

Kerala is home to our employees and their families. We have mobilised immediate funds, we will also try to work towards long term rehabilitation through our tourneys and other initiatives. We have been overwhelmed by the support of our audience who have come together to strengthen our relief efforts.”

While Kerala’s economy has suffered a major setback, one that will take quite some time for God’s own country to recover from, it is heartening to see the Indian poker fraternity come together in true spirit of patriotism and goodwill.

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