Indian Billionaires' Charity Donations Rise by 59% in FY 2023 to Rs. 5,806 Crore
Indian billionaires were warm-hearted in the last fiscal year (FY 2023), donating Rs. 5,806 crores to charity, up from Rs. 3,034 crores in the previous year (FY 2022), according to the EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2023. This represents a 59% increase.
Shiv Nadar, founder and chairman of HCL Technologies, led the way with a donation of Rs. 2,042 crore through the Shiv Nadar Foundation in FY 2023. This is the third time in five years that Nadar has become the most generous Indian philanthropist. His donation translates to Rs. 5.6 crore per day.
Nadar”s donations increased by 76% compared to the previous year. Wipro”s Azim Premji took the second spot with a donation of Rs. 1,774 crore, a 267% increase from the previous year. Mukesh Ambani and family donated Rs. 376 crore, making them the third-most generous donors. They make donations through the Reliance Foundation.
Kumar Mangalam Birla and family secured the fourth spot with a donation of Rs. 287 crore, and Gautam Adani and family of the Adani Group came in fifth with Rs. 285 crore. Anil Agarwal and family took the seventh spot with a donation of Rs. 241 crore, which is 46% higher than the previous year.
The top 10 also includes the philanthropic couple Nandan Nilekani and Rohini Nilekani, whose annual donations stand at Rs. 189 crore and Rs. 170 crore, respectively. The youngest philanthropist featured on the list is Zerodha”s co-founder Nikhil Kamath (37), who donated Rs. 110 crore.
According to Naghma Mulla, CEO of the EdelGive Foundation, this year witnessed record donations by billionaires, denoting modern India”s giving culture. “Wealth creation is important for economic development, while philanthropy is equally important for economic prosperity. I am enthusiastic about the surge in personal philanthropy in India. Cumulative personal donations have increased by 60% to reach Rs. 4,958 crore, constituting 70% of the total donations on the list,” Mulla said.
The number of donors donating over Rs. 100 crore has increased from two to 14, and those contributing over Rs. 50 crore have risen from five 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 five years,” Mulla added.
