Premji Foundation, Tata Trusts star in social spends

India's top philanthropic organizations are spending money comparable to the social spends of the country's biggest for-profit companies, a trend that has come to light after Bengaluru-based Azim Premji Foundation disclosed its financials for the first time in its quarter-century of existence.

- Nehal Chaliawala & Varun Sood

As per the reported financials, the eponymous not-for-profit entity of billionaire Azim Premji spent ₹1,528 crore on philanthropy in 2024. That was more than twice the ₹699.31 crore spent by the Tata Trusts in the same year, according to financials filed by the entity.

The spends by the two Indian philanthropic organizations are on par with the CSR (corporate social responsibility) expenditures of the country's largest companies, including Reliance Industries Ltd, HDFC Bank Ltd, and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) Ltd, according to a Mint review.

Reliance Industries spent ₹1,592 crore on CSR initiatives in 2024, followed by TCS and HDFC Bank, which spent ₹953 crore and ₹945.1 crore, respectively. Following them were ONGC (Oil and Natural Gas Corp.) and Tata Steel Ltd, which spent ₹634.5 crore and ₹580 crore, respectively, in 2024. Infosys Ltd took the sixth spot, spending ₹577 crore.