The generosity of Indian industrialists seems to be on a decline. A report by Hurun's Philanthropy List says for two successive years, the number of philanthropists in India, as well as the amounts they have donated, has fallen.
In 2016, Rs 2,334 crore was donated for charitable causes by 27 individuals. The list is topped by HCL Founder Shiv Nadar who pledged Rs 630 crore this year. The amount for the highest donor has seen a stark fall compared to Rs 27,514 crore donated by Azim Premji who was the most generous person as per last year’s list.
Not only is the amount shrinking but the number of philanthropists from the list are also going down. In 2014, the list included 50 individuals but the number fell to 36 in 2015, which further fell to 27 last year.
Most preferred cause
The common cause this year and last has been education. It accounted for 84 percent of donations last year and 35 percent this year.
Who all made it to the list?
Shiv Nadar
Shiv Nadar with Ambassador Richard Verma.
Shiv Nadar went for the most preferred cause and pledged the donation amount towards education in India.
Kris Gopalakrishnan
Kris Gopalakrishnan at the India Economic Summit 2008. File photo.
With Rs 313 crore donations by Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan and his wife, the couple followed Nadar in the second spot. Their contributions were primarily towards healthcare, social development and education.
Mukesh Ambani
Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries Limited, poses for photographers before addressing the annual shareholders meeting in Mumbai. Photo: Reuters
India’s richest billionaire with a fortune of Rs 175,400 crore, Mukesh Ambani made it to the third rank in the Philanthropy list. He donated Rs 303 crore towards education, rural development, sports, health and to Swach Bharat.
Cyrus Poonawalla
Vaccine billionaire Cyrus Poonawalla made it to the list by pledging Rs 250 crore for setting up hospitals and educational institutes.
Rahul Bajaj
File photo of Rahul Bajaj, chairman of Bajaj Auto Ltd., during the India Economic Summit 2014 at the World Economic Forum in New Delhi. Photo: Reuters
Rahul Bajaj, who saw his wealth increase by USD 1.1 billion, made contributions of Rs 244 crore towards education.
Pallonji Mistry
At the age of 87, Pallonji Mistry of Shapoorji Pallonji Group became the eldest philanthropist on the list, who gave Rs 68 crore as donations. As per Forbes magazine, Mistry has an estimated wealth of USD 16.9 billion as of September 2016.
Kumar Mangalam Birla
The man who didn’t have the courage to tell his father that he didn’t want to study chartered accountancy, Kumar Mangalam Birla became the youngest on the Philanthropy list. The Chairman of Aditya Birla Group donated Rs 21 crore.
Major disappointment this year has been grants from the information technology (IT) space. The sector has been reeling under pressure due to Brexit and US President Donald Trump’s call on H1B visas.
Azim Premji
Not only did Wipro Chairman Azim Premji fall to rank 13 from the top slot last year but his contributions have also come down to Rs 34 crore from Rs 27,514 crore.
Narayana Murthy
Narayana Murthy, founder of Infosys Limited, speaks during a dialogue session at the Asian Financial Forum in Hong Kong. Photo: Reuters
IT industrialist Narayana Murthy followed suit and shelled out Rs 14 crore and took the 22 spot on the list. He was fourth last year with Rs 1322 crore donations.
Mumbai is not only home to the richest but also to the most generous individuals. All the 27 entrepreneurs on the Philanthropy list belonged to the city of dreams, Mumbai.
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