Founder of HCL Enterprise, Shiv Nadar retained ‘India’s Most Generous’ title for the third time in 5 years, according to the Edelgive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2023 released on Thursday. As per the report, Nadar, who tops the list, donated Rs 5.6 crore per day with an annual donation of Rs 2,042 crore.
Wipro’s Azim Premji features in the 2nd position with an annual donation of Rs 1,774 crore. With a donation of Rs 376 crore, India’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani came third on the list. Kumar Mangalam Birla & Family and Gautam Adani & family feature in the 4th and 5th position in the list with donations worth Rs 287 crore and 285 core respectively.
Names like Bajaj family, Anil Agarwal & family, Nandan Nilekani, Cyrus S Poonawalla & Adar Poonawalla and Rohini Nilekani feature on the top 10.
Nikhil Kamath, 37, Co-founder of Zerodha, is the youngest philanthropist in the list. Kamath brothers donated Rs 110 crores this year.
With a donation of Rs 170 crore, Chairperson of Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies and Co-founder and Director of EkStep, a non-profit education platform Rohini Nilekani is the most generous woman philanthropist in the list. She is followed by Anu Aga and Leena Gandhi Tewari who donated Rs 23 crore each.
Record year for philanthropy
Commenting on the list, Anas Rahman Junaid, MD and Chief Researcher, Hurun India, said, “This year is a record year for big philanthropy. In the past 5 years, the number of donors contributing over Rs 100 crore has surged from 2 to 14, and those donating over Rs 50 crore, has risen from 5 to 24. Given India’s potential for wealth creation and assuming a continued commitment to philanthropy by billionaires, I anticipate these figures to potentially double over the next 5 years. The EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List serves as a comprehensive record of India’s philanthropic endeavors, reflecting a positive transformation. I hope the stories of these philanthropists can tell the story of philanthropy in India and encourage more individuals to donate effectively.”
“Wealth creation is important for economic development, while philanthropy is equally important for economic prosperity. I am incredibly enthusiastic about the surge in personal philanthropy in India. Cumulative personal donations have increased by 60% to reach INR 4,958 crore, constituting 70% of the total donations in the list. The EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List captures the essence of modern India’s giving culture through the perspectives of these philanthropists,” he added.
“Moving into the fourth year, the EdelGive Hurun partnership is one of the most rewarding partnerships we have had. While creating the most authoritative lists of philanthropists in India, our aim is to document and analyze the evolving patterns of philanthropic giving in the country. Through the EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2023, we deep dive into the motivations and thoughts that drive these eminent philanthropists to contribute towards a plethora of causes,” expressed Naghma Mulla, CEO, EdelGive Foundation.
Missing names
However, surprisingly, names like Tata Sons Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata, Infosys Founder Narayana Murthy, Infosys Foundation Chairperson Sudha Murty who have devoted their lives to philanthropy are missing from the Edelgive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2023.
Quizzed on the same, Anas Rahman Junaid from Hurun India told The CSR Journal, “As you rightly pointed out, they are some of the biggest philanthropists in the country there is no doubt about it. But when it comes to our methodology, our list is based on individual philanthropy and not as a corporation. We put out a list called the Top 50 Philanthropists of the Century and Tata Group was #1 on that list. There we highlighted Mr Jamsetji Tata and Mr Ratan Tata as well. We have a very role model sort of story for the Tata Group and Tata Sons and their philanthropy. It’s just that our methodology is slightly different and we focus on individual donations for philanthropy, that’s the only reason.”
Top causes for philanthropy
The top five most favoured philanthropic causes include Education, Arts, Culture & Heritage, Healthcare, Environment & Sustainability and Ecosystem Building.
Top 10 CSR spending companies
The top 10 companies that spent on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in excess to the mandatory commitment in the FY 23 include names like Ashok Leyland, UPL, Macrotech Developers, Jindal Steel & Power, Ambuja Cements, Adani Green Energy, Hindustan Zinc, Shree Cement, Adani Power and Bajaj Holdings & Investment as per the list.
