Azim Premji Leads Philanthropic Efforts As The Most Generous Indian

Azim Premji has named as the 'Most Generous Indian' in the Hurun Report's annual India Philanthropy List for the third time since its inception.

With donations pegged at Rs 21,514 crores over the course of 2015, Premji's donation account for 80 per cent of the total figure on the list. It's worth remembering that the Wipro billionaire had dedicated half of the stake in the IT company to philanthropic activities in July.

The Hurun which measured donations by the value of their cash or cash equivalent from 1 November 2014 to 31 October 2015 list and a cutoff of Rs.10 crore which meant that 36 individuals made it to the list, down from the 50 last year.

Second on the list is Nandan and Rohan Nilekani with a contribution of Rs 2,404 crore followed by Narayan Murthy with Rs. 1,322 crore. India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani ranks sixth on the list with Rs 345 crore of donations.

The report finds that among the rich education remains the most favoured philanthropic cause, accounting for 84 per cent of donations made by entrants on the list. For example, the Azim Premji foundation works for empowering education in eight states and UTV's Ronnie Screwvalla who features eighth on the list making most of his donations towards education.

Observing the trend, 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."

The other causes that donations were made towards are social development, healthcare and urban governance.

Also, the report finds that the average donation increased from Rs. 300 crore last year to Rs 900 crore this year, mainly on the back of Premji's donation.

Speaking about the list, Anas Rahman Junaid, Business Head, Hurun Report India, said, "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."

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

Here are the top ten from the Hurun list: