Why do people give for charity? Understanding philanthropy in India

Philanthropy sector has always been seen as being dominated by large family foundations and over the recent past by donations made under Corporate Social Responsibility in India. The social sector funding or grants as they are called has been a point of contention since the evolution of the philanthropic structures in India. The spotlight is back on this topic due to the recent Mackenzie Scott’s ‘no-strings-attached’ donation to several development organisations in the world and those select few in India.

Human nature is fundamentally creative there exists a desire for constant change and innovation. Many people look forward to and support David’s in every David vs Goliath, or Champion vs Challenger. Despite this, many small and innovative organisations fail, usually due to the severe barriers placed on them.

Even if large amount of money is given, such as Mackenzie Scott’s massive donation of about 2.7 billion dollars, the question then is, who gets the money? Does it go to the new and developing small organisations? Or is it swallowed up by the big few? It creates competition on one hand and bad blood on the other. Unfortunately, the data supports the latter.

The Centre for Development Policy and Practice has been conducting a weekly talk series on the Philanthropy sector in India. One of its recent guests was Mr Ved Arya. Ved is a Social Development Entrepreneur, author, and a well-known brand of his own in the social sector. He raises an important question does Philanthropy reach the smaller NGOS’s? Or get consumed by the behemoths?

continue reading: https://www.siasat.com/why-do-people-give-for-charity-understanding-philanthropy-in-india-2169512/