Lycamobile presents cheque for £250000 to Murali

London: Lycamobile, one of the largest global providers of low cost international mobile calls, has presented a cheque for £250,000 (USD 387,565.75) to Sri Lankan cricket legend Muttiah Muralitharan on behalf of the British Asian Trust.

According to a press release issued by Lycamobile, the amount is the first instalment of a £1 million grant the telecom company and its Gnanam Foundation announced to give to one of the Prince`s Charities. The grant has been earmarked for projects in Sri Lanka that focus on reaching out to vulnerable populations in the country by supporting local organisations who are actively engaged in enhancing access to education, employment and health care. Trust Ambassador Muttiah Muralitharan, better known as Murali, collected the cheque on behalf of The British Asian Trust, and is delighted by the generous donation. Subaskaran Allirajah, chairman of Lycamobile and The Gnanam Foundation, commented, "We are committed to providing long-term support to people in need.” "Our current partnership with The British Asian Trust has been successful in the on-going Skills and Training project which enables youth from slums in Chennai, India to gain employable skills.” "I am delighted to extend this partnership to Sri Lanka where we can make a significant impact on the lives of disadvantaged people." Group Chief Executive Officer of Lycamobile, Milind Kangle, stated that the team is keen to help the people in need following the company`s phenomenal success. "We are glad to be in a position where we can now contribute significantly to a number of worthy causes." The British Asian Trust will be managing the grant across four years, and will identify the areas through its in-house, and on-the-ground experts. The charities will then be selected after a rigorous due diligence process to source the most impactful models. The Trust`s Director of Investments, Abha Thorat-Shah said, "This contribution will enable us to expand our reach into Sri Lanka and allow us to support established local organisations that have a proven track record in delivering high impact projects. PTI