With An Incredible INR 2,042 crore, Shiv Nadar Is The Biggest Philanthropist in India Although it's the rich list were always talking about, increasingly, it seems philanthropy seems to catching up in a significant way in India.
By Kabir Singh Bhandari •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
Although it's the rich list were always talking about, increasingly, it seems philanthropy seems to catching up in a significant way in India. 119 philanthropists in India have cumulatively donated a whopping INR 8,445 crores in the last year, an increase of 59% compared to last year and 200% compared to 3 years ago.
Out of these, the top 10 cumulatively donated INR 5,806 crore in FY23, with Shiv Nadar and family emerging as the leading philanthropists making a donation of INR 2,042 crore. The founder-chairman of HCL Technologies, Nadar has consistently displayed his commitment by contributing 76% more than his donations in FY22. Established in 1994, the Shiv Nadar Foundation operates under the ethos of 'Creative Philanthropy'. Nadar's philanthropic endeavours have predominantly centred around arts and culture.
With a substantial donation of INR 1,774 crore, Azim Premji and family secured the second position on the list and Mukesh Ambani and family, donating INR 376 crore. Securing the 4th and 5th position were Kumar Mangalam and family with a donation of INR 287 crore and Gautam Adani and family of the Adani Group, donating INR 285 crore.
Here are some highlights of the philanthropic endeavours in India:
1. With an annual donation of INR 2,042 crore, Shiv Nadar, 78, retained 'India's most generous' title for third time in 5 years. He donated INR 5.6 crore per day.
2. Wipro's Azim Premji, 78, in the second spot with an annual donation of INR 1,774 crore.
3. Nikhil Kamath, 37, co-founder of Zerodha, was the youngest philanthropist.
4. With a donation of INR 170 crore, Rohini Nilekani, 64, is the most generous woman philanthropist.
5. The biggest increment in donation: by donating INR 1290 crores more compared to last year, Azim Premji has given the amounts of incremental donation, followed by Shiv Nadar who donated INR 881 crores compared to last year.
6. No. of philanthropists who have donated more than INR 10 crore increased by circa 119% over the last 5 years, from 37 to 81 this year.
7. The average age of philanthropists is 68 years, same as the last year.
8. Based on place of residence, Mumbai led with 33% of the list; followed by New Delhi, accounting for 16%, and Bengaluru at 11%.
9. The pharma industry has the largest number of philanthropists in the list, accounting for 17%, followed by chemicals and petrochemicals at 11%.
10. Women find their place in the list with a donation of INR 170 crore, Rohini Nilekani of Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies being India's most generous woman, followed Anu Aga and family of Thermax who donated INR 23 crore and Leena Gandhi Tewari of USV also donated INR 23 crore in FY23.
This exhaustive information was compiled in Edelgive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2023 Hurun Report, the world's largest rich list compiler.
