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Business Ethics & Philanthropy Azim Premji, Nandan Nilekani among Top Philanthropists of 2021
Azim Premji, Nandan Nilekani among Top Philanthropists of 2021
With a donation of a steep Rs. 9,713 crore, Azim Premji & family – the founder chairman of Wipro – tops the EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2021. This is EdelGive and Hurun India’s 8th annual ranking of the most generous individuals of our nation.
EdelGive Foundation has partnered with Hurun India towards creating this report to understand philanthropic giving in the country from a data and evidence point of view. The report is not only significant in understanding data of giving but also throws light on the sectors and geographies that are at the receiving end of this giving. It follows on from the Hurun India Rich List, a ranking of 1,007 richest individuals in India, released in September 2021 for the tenth year.
Top philanthropists of 2021
In June 2021, The Azim Premji Foundation nearly doubled its allocation towards the pandemic from Rs. 1,125 crore to Rs. 2,125 crore to expand work on vaccination across ten states, with a commitment to increase this further if the need demands.
Rank | Name | Donation (INR Cr) | Change % | Primary Cause | Company | 3yr Donation (INR Cr) |
1(-) | Azim Premji & family | 9,713 | 23% | Education | Wipro | 18,070 |
2(-) | Shiv Nadar & family | 1,263 | 59% | Arts, Culture & Heritage | HCL Technologies | 2,884 |
3(-) | Mukesh Ambani & family | 577 | 26% | Education | Reliance Industries | 1,437 |
4(-) | Kumar Mangalam Birla & family | 377 | 47% | Healthcare | Aditya Birla | 732 |
5(+2) | Nandan Nilekani | 183 | 15% | Societal Thinking | Infosys | 546 |
6(+2) | Hindujafamily | 166 | 25% | Education | Hinduja | 351 |
7(+3) | Bajaj family | 136 | 83% | Healthcare | Bajaj | 341 |
8(+1) | Gautam Adani & family | 130 | 48% | Disaster Relief | Adani | 302 |
8(-3) | Anil Agarwal & family | 130 | -40% | Disaster Relief | Vedanta | 458 |
10(+24) | Burman family | 114 | 502% | Healthcare | Dabur India | 151 |
HCL Technologies founder-chairman Shiv Nadar & family retains the 2nd spot. As of 2021, Nadar has invested almost a billion US dollars through his foundation to impact over 30,000 students directly. In 2021 alone, the Shiv Nadar foundation donated Rs. 70 core towards COVID relief. With a donation of Rs. 557 crore, Mukesh Ambani & family of Reliance Industries, occupies the 3rd spot. RIL produced over 1000 MT of medical-grade liquid oxygen per day or 11% of India’s total production and supplied over 55,000 MT of medical-grade liquid oxygen across the country free of cost.
With a donation of Rs. 377 crore, Kumar Mangalam Birla & family ranks 4th on the list. The Aditya Birla Group donated Rs. 400 crore to the PM CARES Fund and Rs. 50 crore to FICCI-Aditya Birla CSR Centre for Excellence. Birla has also allocated Rs. 50 crore for supplying N95 Masks, PPE’s and ventilators in India. Infosys’s Nandan Nilekani ranks 5th. He donated Rs. 138 crore for Societal Thinking in FY 2021. Nandan and Rohini Nilekani signed the Giving Pledge in 2017 and committed to donating half of their wealth towards philanthropy.
Tech and pharma entrepreneurs were most generous
Said Anas Rahman Junaid, MD and Chief Researcher, Hurun India, “The cumulative donation in EdelGiveHurun India Philanthropy List has grown from just under Rs. 2,500 crore to more than Rs. 14,750 crore today. Entrepreneurs from Pharmaceutical and Software & Services sectors, which are the top wealth creators in Hurun India Rich List 2021, have interestingly secured the top position in terms of cumulative value of donations too. Some of the tech entrepreneurs, who I have interacted with, are in the process of finalising substantial ‘giving back’ plans to causes ranging from education to climate change. For instance, the Kamath brothers of Zerodha have plans to give back Rs. 750 crore over the next three years. I expect to see more such new wealth creators turned givers gaining a spot in the future editions of EdelGiveHurun India Philanthropy Lists.”
C-level executives have been playing a very impactful role in Indian philanthropy. Said Mr. Junaid, “This year’s list includes AM Naik who donated Rs. 112 crore and Amit Chandra and Archana Chandra who have donated Rs. 19 crore. This is impressive considering the fact that they are amongst the top 100 philanthropists in the country – ahead of more than 900 individuals who featured on the Hurun India Rich List.”
Culture of giving back
“Indian wealth creators have the potency to enable philanthropic structures, systems and processes for overall nation building. It is important to speak about these inspiring philanthropic stories and incite motivational action auguring India’s pace of ‘giving back’ to the society. We need to create forums to celebrate such efforts so that it percolates down to every level of the community and encourages us to embrace the spirit of altruism and humane-living,” concluded Anas Rahman Junaid.
Most preferred Philanthropic Cause – 2021
The preferred cause of India’s top philanthropists has been Education, although on the back of Covid-19, Disaster Relief has grown dramatically to become the second most popular cause this year. With 65% of donations, Education remains the most favoured philanthropic cause, followed by Disaster Relief & Management (13%) and Health Care (6%).
Rank | Cause | Total Donation (INR Cr) | No. of Donors | Change % | Highest Donor | Highest Individual Donation for the cause (INR Cr) |
1 | Education | 9,658 | 72 | 4% | Azim Premji | 8,501 |
2 | Disaster Relief | 1,915 | 60 | 433% | Azim Premji | 1,179 |
3 | Health Care | 859 | 65 | 14% | Mukesh Ambani | 182 |
4 | Arts, Culture & Heritage | 747 | 26 | New | Shiv Nadar | 721 |
5 | Rural Transformation | 167 | 42 | -39% | Azim Premji | 62 |
6 | Societal Thinking | 146 | 2 | 35% | Nandan Nilekani | 138 |
7 | Environment & Sustainability | 132 | 44 | -27% | Azim Premji | 24 |
8 | Livelihood Enhancement | 80 | 24 | -20% | Bajaj family | 30 |
9 | Social Development | 50 | 11 | New | Nandan Nilekani | 34 |
10 | Sports For Development | 44 | 29 | -31% | Mukesh Ambani | 25 |
CSR spent beyond the prescribed 2%
Here are some of the companies that spent more than the government-mandated 2% towards CSR.
Rank | Company | Key Person | Prescribed CSR (INR Cr) | Actual CSR (INR Cr) |
1 | Aurobindo Pharma | PV Ramprasad Reddy | 4.4 | 54 |
2 | UPL | Rajju Shroff | 10 | 100 |
3 | Cadila Healthcare | Pankaj Patel | 25 | 79 |
4 | Vedanta | Anil Agarwal | 17 | 39 |
5 | Sun Pharmaceutical Industries | Dilip Shanghvi | 13 | 27 |
6 | Grasim Industries | Kumar Mangalam Birla | 45 | 85 |
7 | Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail | Kumar Mangalam Birla | 1 | 2 |
8 | UltraTech Cement | Kumar Mangalam Birla | 73 | 120 |
9 | Glenmark Pharmaceuticals | Glenn Saldanha | 31 | 49 |
10 | Wipro | Azim Premji | 166 | 251 |
CSR spend growing at a CAGR of 15%
Government, Civil Society, and the Corporate are the three distinct pillars sustaining the nation-building process. Corporate Social Responsibility is moving away from cheque book charity donations to a more long-term strategic engagement. The cumulative CSR spend of BSE 200 companies has grown from Rs. 5,561 crore FY15 to Rs. 12,069 crore in FY21.
![CSR spending of BSE 200 companies (INR crore) - Hurun](https://thecsrjournal.in/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Hurun-CSR-spending-of-BSE-200-companies-INR-crore.jpg)
Unspent CSR
The proportion of unspent capital has been on the decline since FY15. The shortfall in spending was 5% of the total spend or Rs. 628 crore in FY21. The gap stood at 30% in FY15.
![Hurun - Unspent CSR BSE 200 companies](https://thecsrjournal.in/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Hurun-Unspent-CSR-BSE-200-companies.jpg)
Sectors donating most towards corporate CSR
With Rs. 2,329 crore CSR spend Oil & Gas leads followed by Software & Services with Rs. 1,671 crore and Banks with Rs. 1,455 crore.
Rank | Industry | Number of Companies | Cumulative Spend FY 21 | Cumulative Excess Spend FY 21 | 3yr Average Profit (%) |
1 | Oil & Gas | 11 | 2,329 | 214 | 1.8% |
2 | Software & Services | 10 | 1,671 | 99 | 2.1% |
3 | Banks | 19 | 1,455 | 94 | 2.5% |
4 | Utilities | 11 | 954 | 180 | 2.5% |
5 | Other Financial Services | 17 | 911 | 65 | 2.0% |
6 | Metals & Mining | 8 | 816 | 174 | 2.1% |
7 | Automobiles & Components | 13 | 671 | 6 | 1.9% |
8 | Pharmaceuticals | 21 | 512 | 155 | 2.7% |
9 | Food, Beverages & Tobacco | 7 | 465 | 1 | 2.0% |
10 | Capital Goods | 13 | 425 | 47 | 2.0% |
Source: Hurun Research Institute; EdelGiveHurun India Philanthropy List 2021
Complete list – EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2021
Rank | Name | Donation
INR crore |
Primary Cause | Company |
1 | Azim Premji & family | 9,713 | Education | Wipro |
2 | Shiv Nadar & family | 1,263 | Education | HCL Technologies |
3 | Mukesh Ambani & family | 577 | Education | Reliance Industries |
4 | Kumar Mangalam Birla & family | 377 | Healthcare | Aditya Birla |
5 | Nandan Nilekani | 183 | Societal Thinking | Infosys |
6 | Hinduja family | 166 | Education | Hinduja |
7 | Bajaj family | 136 | Healthcare | Bajaj |
8 | Anil Agarwal & family | 130 | Disaster Relief | Vedanta |
8 | Gautam Adani & family | 130 | Disaster Relief | Adani |
10 | Burman family | 114 | Healthcare | Dabur India |
11 | AM Naik | 112 | Healthcare | Larsen & Toubro |
12 | Sudhir Mehta & Samir Mehta | 98 | Disaster Relief | Torrent Pharmaceuticals |
13 | Godrej family | 80 | Disaster Relief | Godrej |
14 | Rohini Nilekani | 69 | Environmental Sustainability | Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies |
15 | B Parthasaradhi Reddy & family | 67 | Disaster Relief | Hetero Labs |
16 | Anand Mahindra & family | 63 | Education | Mahindra & Mahindra |
17 | Pankaj Patel & family | 59 | Healthcare | Cadila Healthcare |
18 | Cyrus S Poonawalla & Adar Poonawalla | 58 | Education | Serum Institute of India |
19 | RakeshJhunjhunwala | 50 | Education | Rare Enterprises |
19 | S Gopalakrishnan & family | 50 | Healthcare | Infosys |
21 | George Jacob Muthoot, George Thomas Muthoot, Sara George Muthoot, George Alexander Muthoot & family | 40 | Education | Muthoot Finance |
22 | Dilip & Anand Surana | 39 | Healthcare | Micro Labs |
23 | SD Shibulal & family | 35 | Healthcare | Infosys |
24 | P P Reddy & family | 33 | Disaster Relief | Megha Engineering & Infrastructures |
24 | Sanjiv Goenka & family | 33 | Education | CESC |
26 | PV Krishna Reddy & family | 32 | Disaster Relief | Megha Engineering & Infrastructures |
27 | Benu GopalBangur & family | 29 | Education | Shree Cement |
27 | Hasmukh Chudgar & family | 29 | Education | Intas Pharmaceuticals |
29 | Rajiv Kumar & Ravinder Kumar | 28 | Disaster Relief | DharampalSatyapal |
29 | Rajju Shroff & family | 28 | Disaster Relief | United Phosphorus |
29 | Vikram Lal & family | 28 | Education | Eicher Motors |
32 | Kalanithi Maran | 27 | Education | Sun TV Network |
32 | RadhakishanDamani& family | 27 | Education | Avenue Supermarts |
34 | Akshay Kumar | 26 | Disaster Relief | Entertainment |
35 | Nithin Kamath & Nikhil Kamath | 25 | Disaster Relief | Zerodha |
36 | Leena Gandhi Tewari | 24 | Healthcare | USV |
37 | PV Ramprasad Reddy & family | 23 | Healthcare | Aurobindo Pharma |
37 | Ronnie Screwvala & family | 23 | Rural Development | Unilazer Ventures |
39 | Glenn Saldanha & family | 22 | Education | Glenmark Pharmaceuticals |
39 | Kochouseph Chittilappilly & family | 22 | Disaster Relief | V-Guard Industries |
41 | Uday Kotak | 21 | Education | Kotak Mahindra Bank |
42 | Anu Aga & family | 20 | Education | Thermax |
43 | Amit and Archana Chandra | 19 | Environmental Sustainability | A.T.E. Chandra Foundation |
43 | Madhukar Parekh & family | 19 | Rural Development | Pidilite Industries |
43 | Shri Ram Beriwala & Shyam Sunder Beriwala | 19 | Healthcare | Shyam Steel |
46 | Harish Shah & family | 18 | Healthcare | Signet Excipients |
46 | Murali K Divi & family | 18 | Healthcare | Divi’s Laboratories |
48 | Ranjan Pai & family | 17 | Education | Manipal Education & Medical |
48 | Sameer Gehlaut & family | 17 | Healthcare | Indiabulls Housing Finance |
50 | Manju D Gupta & family | 16 | Rural Development | Lupin |
50 | Nusli Wadia & family | 16 | Healthcare | Britannia Industries |
50 | RajanRaheja & family | 16 | Healthcare | Exide Industries |
50 | Sajjan Jindal & family | 16 | Healthcare | JSW Steel |
50 | Yusuf Hamied & family | 16 | Healthcare | Cipla |
55 | Amitabh Bachchan | 15 | Disaster Relief | Entertainment |
55 | Ashwin Dani & family | 15 | Skill Development | Asian Paints |
55 | Basant Bansal & Roop Kumar Bansal | 15 | Financial Inclusion | M3M India |
55 | Dilip Shanghvi | 15 | Disaster Relief | Sun Pharmaceutical Industries |
59 | Binny Bansal | 14 | Education | Investments |
60 | Ajay S Shriram & family | 13 | Healthcare | DCM Shriram |
60 | Lachman Das Mittal & family | 13 | Education | International Tractors |
62 | Chirayu R Amin & family | 12 | Education | Alembic Pharmaceuticals |
62 | Harsh Mariwala & family | 12 | Societal Platforms | Marico |
62 | Kuldip Singh Dhingra & Gurbachan Singh Dhingra | 12 | Skill Development | Berger Paints |
62 | Radha Vembu | 12 | Disaster Relief | Zoho |
66 | Arvindkumar Poddar & family | 11 | Education | Balkrishna Industries |
66 | Harsh Vardhan Goenka & family | 11 | Healthcare | RPG Enterprises |
66 | LN Mittal & family | 11 | Disaster Relief | HPCL-Mittal Energy |
66 | Vinod Kumar Agarwal | 11 | Healthcare | Agarwal Coal |
70 | Acharya Balkrishna | 10 | Disaster Relief | PatanjaliAyurved |
70 | Baba Kalyani & family | 10 | Rural Development | Bharat Forge |
70 | Joy Alukkas & family | 10 | Healthcare | Joy Alukkas |
73 | Balkrishan Goenka & family | 9 | Livelihood Enhancement | Welspun India |
73 | Kiran Mazumdar Shaw | 9 | Education | Biocon |
73 | Mangal Prabhat Lodha | 9 | Healthcare | Macrotech Developers |
73 | Mannalal B Agrawal & family | 9 | Healthcare | Ajanta Pharma |
73 | MukeshJagtiani & family | 9 | Healthcare | Lifestyle International |
73 | Pawan Kant Munjal & family | 9 | Disaster Relief | Hero MotoCorp |
73 | Rajendra Vallabhaji Gogri & Chandrakant Vallabhaji Gogri | 9 | Rural Development | Aarti Industries |
73 | Vembu Sekar | 9 | Disaster Relief | Zoho |
81 | Prakash Chhabria & Ritu Chhabria | 8 | Healthcare | Finolex Cables |
81 | Rajinder Gupta & family | 8 | Education | Trident |
81 | Renu Munjal & family | 8 | Disaster Relief | Hero MotoCorp |
81 | Suman Kant Munjal & family | 8 | Disaster Relief | Hero MotoCorp |
81 | VC Nannapaneni & family | 8 | Healthcare | Natco Pharma |
81 | VP Nandakumar & family | 8 | Education | Manappuram Finance |
87 | Bhadresh Shah & family | 7 | Arts & Culture | AIA Engineering |
87 | Rajiv Singh & family | 7 | Healthcare | DLF |
87 | Ratan Jindal & family | 7 | Education | Jindal Stainless (Hisar) |
90 | Arun Vijay Nathani & family | 6 | Education | Cybage Software |
90 | B L Taparia & family | 6 | Education | Supreme Industries |
90 | K P Ramasamy & family | 6 | Education | KPR Mill |
90 | Shyam Bhartia & Hari Bhartia | 6 | Disaster Relief | Jubilant Foodworks |
90 | SP Oswal & family | 6 | Healthcare | Vardhman Textiles |
95 | Anand Deshpande | 5 | Disaster Relief | Persistent Systems |
95 | Anurang Jain & family | 5 | Skill Development | Endurance Technologies |
95 | Arun Bharat Ram & family | 5 | Education | SRF |
95 | K Nithyananda Reddy | 5 | Disaster Relief | Aurobindo Pharma |
95 | K Satish Reddy & family | 5 | Livelihood Enhancement | Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories |
95 | Kavita Yadupati Singhania & family | 5 | Environmental Sustainability | JK Cement |
95 | Onkar Kanwar & family | 5 | Healthcare | Apollo Tyres |
95 | Pritviraj Jindal & family | 5 | Healthcare | JSW Steel |
95 | Ravi Kant Jaipuria & family | 5 | Education | Varun Beverages |
95 | Sanjeev Jain & Sandeep Jain | 5 | Education | Akums Drugs & Pharmaceuticals |
95 | Sunil Mittal & family | 5 | Education | Bharti Airtel |