Azim Premji ‘Most Generous Indian’ for third year running, making up 80% of donations on Hurun India Philanthropy List

Hurun Research finds 36 individuals, down from 50 last year, who donated INR 10 Cr or more

Sunny Varkey of GEMS Education is the second Indian to join The Giving Pledge

Hurun Report launches Hurun India Philanthropy List for third year

•         IT tycoon Azim Premji is the ‘Most Generous Indian”, donating INR 27,514 Cr

•         36 Indians on the list, down from 50 last year. 12 new entrants and 26 drop outs

•         With a net worth of INR 9000 Cr, ‘Education King’ Sunny Varkey, 58, joins Gates and Buffett by pledging half his wealth to the ‘Giving Pledge’.

•         Nandan, Rohini Nilekani & Family, came in second with a donation of INR 2404 Cr, primarily towards the cause of urban governance, public policy and education.

•         Education remains the most favoured philanthropic cause, accounting for 84% of donations

•         Led by Azim Premji, South Indians in the list donated more than the North Indians

•         Average donation increased from INR 300 crores last year to INR 900 crores this year, mainly on the back of Premji’s donation

•         With 10 individuals, Mumbai is home to most of the Hurun philanthropists, followed by Bengaluru and Delhi

•         Anu Aga and Family of Thermax donate 30% of family’s income to their flagship intiative Teach for India Campaign.

•         With a donation of INR 35 Cr, Rohan Murthy (32) of Infosys is the youngest philanthropist on the list; Oldest being Pallonji Mistry (86) of Shapoorji Pallonji who donated INR 96 crores.

•         5 do not live in India. Of the non residents, 4 made their donations in India.

•         Average age of 63 years, one year older than the average age of the Hurun India Rich List 2015.

•         33 of the Top 36 are also listed in the Hurun India Rich List 2015.

(8 January 2016, Mumbai) The Hurun Research Institute today released the Hurun India Philanthropy List 2015, a ranking of the most generous individuals from India.  Donations were measured by the value of their cash or cash equivalent from 1 November 2014 to 31 October 2015. This is the third year of the list and it follows on from the Hurun India Rich List, a ranking of the 296 richest individuals in India, released in September for the third year running.

With the same cut-off as last year of INR 10 Cr, the Hurun India Philanthropy List has 36 individuals, down by 14 from last year.

Azim Hashim Premji (70) the most generous Indian of the year donated INR 27,514 Cr for education. The Azim Premji foundation is working for empowering education in India.” A girl child who is even a little bit educated is more conscious of family planning, health care and, in turn, her children's own education”, he says. The foundation works in 8 states and has more than 350,000 schools.

Nandan (60) and Rohini Nilekani (56) take the second spot in the list with a contribution of INR 2,404 Cr. Nandan Nilekani is an Indian entrepreneur, bureaucrat and politician. He left Infosys and joined Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) as the chairman. Although developing entrepreneurship ecosystem has been their primary area of interest, they are also involved in social & rural development and education in India.  Rohini Nilenkani is the chairperson and founder of Arghyam, an organisation that grants funds to implement and manage ground water and sanitations projects in India.

NR Narayana Murthy & family (69) Nagavara Ramarao Narayana Murthy, an IT industrialist, donated INR 1,322 Cr for encouraging entrepreneurship, social development and education. He says “The real power of money is the power to give it away.”

Mukesh Ambani (58) of Reliance Industries is sixth in Hurun India Philanthropy List. Ambani, the richest man in India, donated INR 345 Cr towards healthcare. He channelizes his philanthropic initiative through Reliance foundation, his philanthropic arm. The primary aim of the foundation is to promote sustainable growth in India. Besides healthcare, his philanthropic interests include social & rural development and education.

K Dinesh (61) retired from Infosys in 2011. K Dinesh has been actively involved in philanthropic ventures in education, entrepreneurship encouragement and healthcare. With donations of INR 1,238 Cr Dinesh shot into the top ten for the first time.

Shiv Nadar (70), promoter of India’s fourth-largest software company donated INR 525 Cr to various charitable activities through the Shiv Nadar Foundation. "Samudhay” an initiative to develop a replicable model of development for villages across five critical parameters – education, employability, health, infrastructure and water – is the dream project of the chairman of $6.3 billion HCL Technologies.

“I had the opportunity to visit Mr. Nadar’s foundation and university. His mission to impart contemporary education in poorest villages sets a good example for practical philanthropy in India”, said Anas Rahman Junaid, Business Head, Hurun Report India

The Wedding Philanthropy – Dr Ravi Pillai (62) donated INR 12.5 Cr towards conducting mass weddings. This donation coincided with his daughter’s wedding Dr. Arathi Ravi Pillai.

Some other key highlights

·       The total contribution of top 3 in Hurun India Philanthropy List 2015, shot up by 53% (INR 16,491 Cr) more than previous year.

·       The philanthropists made their money mainly from the tech sector, also one of the biggest wealth creators on the Hurun India Rich List.

·       With 6 individuals, Infosys has created the highest number of philanthropists on the list.

Rohan Murthy is a good example of the new generation of Indian philanthropists. His transition from IT professional to philanthropist demonstrates a new wave of philanthropy in India by donated INR 32 Cr towards the education

“Despite weak corporate earnings in 2015 compared to last year, the increasing speed of wealth creation seems to promise a bright future for Indian philanthropy”, said Anas Rahman Junaid, Business Head, Hurun Report India.

However, according to Charity Aid Foundation UK, as per the World Giving Index, India came down in its ranking from 93^rd in 2013 to 106 in 2014, demonstrating an overall reduction in Indian philanthropy

Rupert Hoogewerf, Chairman and Chief Researcher of Hurun Report, said “Education is the cause that India’s philanthropists feel they can make the biggest difference in.”

Tables & Stats:

Top 10 Philanthropists of 2015:

é Increase in Rankings; − Retained Ranking;  ê Down compared with last year; NEW New to the Top 10

Source: Hurun India Philanthropy List 2015

Favored Philanthropic Causes:

Source: Hurun India Philanthropy List 2015

Geographical Spread

Source: Hurun India Philanthropy List 2015

Hurun India Philanthropy List 2015:

Methodology:

To put together a comprehensive list of the largest philanthropists of India is an almost impossible task. However, we believe at Hurun Report that, the Hurun India Philanthropy List is the most serious and authoritative effort to date, identifying the individuals and highlighting the causes they donate to.

To make this list, the Hurun Report surveyed India’s most successful entrepreneurs, including the 300 from the Hurun India Rich List 2015, meticulously cross referencing the results with media reports and charitable foundations. In the course of the research, Hurun Report attended non-profit related seminars, as well as meeting with scholars, experts, philanthropists and senior members of charitable foundations.

Hurun Report includes cash and cash equivalents pledged with legally binding commitments for the twelve month period from 1 November 2014 to 31 October 2015. In the event that a pledge has been made, we assume a yearly donation made on average ife expectency.

Hurun Report included donations made by companies in which an individual had a significant share, by applying the percentage the individual has of the company on the donations. So, for example, JP Associates in the period made donations of INR 49 Cr, and Jaiprakash Gaur holds 45% of the shares of the company, so Hurun Report recorded Gaur’s donations as INR 22 Cr.

The list includes only individuals born and bred in India regardless of the passport they currently hold. Values are rounded, and past figures are subject to exchange rate fluctuations. 1 USD = 66.74 (Dated on 9-12-15)

About Hurun Report Inc.

China’s Leading Business and Luxury Lifestyle Media Platform since 1999

Nobody Knows China’s Rich Better!

Established as a research unit in 1999, Hurun Report Inc. has grown into a leading business and lifestyle media platform targeted at China’s high worth individuals, on the back of its flagship Hurun China Rich List and, since 2012, its Hurun Global Rich List. Headquartered in Shanghai, Hurun Report has offices in Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Sanya, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Chicago and Cochin, Kerala in India.

Hurun Research has grown to rank the richest individuals of China and India. In 2015, the Hurun Global Rich List ranked 2089 dollar billionaires, benchmarking China’s and India’s top entrepreneurs in the context of their global peers.

Hurun Report India: Established in 2012, Hurun Report India has been focusing on research and interacting with entreprenuers across India. In the year 2015, we launched the fourth edition of Hurun India Rich List, sponsored by Joy Alukkas and 3^rd edition of Hurun India Philanthropy List. 2015. Since 2013, Hurun Report India has been conducting luxury conferences across India. One of the primary objectives of Hurun Report India is to connect Indian and Chinese UHNIs through Hurun Business School and luxury conferences.

Digital. Hurun Report Inc has an award-winning digital media platform, reaching 470,000 unique Chinese high net worths monthly.  Hurun Report’s digital media is composed of an active social media programme on WeChat and Weibo, mobile and tablet Apps and the hurun.net website.

Print. 4 magazines, reaching 485,000 on average a month: Hurun Report targeted at Chinese luxury consumers aspiring to wealth of US$5m (‘Nobody Knows China’s Rich Better’); the Hurun Schools Guide series targeted at Chinese parents looking to send their children overseas (‘Unlocking the Doors to the World’s Best Schools’); Wings & Water targeted at Chinese super luxury consumers with or aspiring to US$50m (‘Beyond First Class’) and Horse & Polo China (‘For Horse Lovers’).

Conferences. Hurun Report Inc hosts over 100 events across China every year, led by its 4 flagships in Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen and Sanya every year.  Hurun Report Inc hosts a further ten in the US, London, Singapore, Australia and India every year.

Market Research. Hurun Report’s close personal relationships with many of China and India’s leading entrepreneurs provides the basis for its fast-growing market research division. Hurun Market Research has developed expertise in the sectors of private banking, insurance, luxury drinks, luxury cars and consumer electronics.

Online Talk Show. ‘Fortune Voices’ (Ma Shang Hu). Kicks off 24 October 2015, a dialogue on what makes China’s entrepreneurs tick, starring Rupert Hoogewerf and Ma Hongman, a well-known host on CBN. Produced by Yueer Media and distributed on CBN TV, Iqiyi.com and Ningxia Satellite across the country.

For further information, see www.hurun.net

For media inquiries, please contact:

Akshita Madan

india@hurun.net