Amitabh Pandey
Bhopal
NGOs play a vital role in effectively implementing the welfare schemes run by the Central and the State Governments in India. In our country, NGOs (non-governmental organizations) have been making significant contributions in areas like health, education, wildlife, water and environmental conservation. Through these organizations, there has been a visible improvement in peoples’ lifestyle and positive socio economic changes are being seen in both urban as well as rural areas.
HCL is a $3.8 billion IT company engaged in engineering, AI, cloud, software, and digital sectors. Its social welfare initiatives are being run not just in India, but across more than 60 countries worldwide, through the HCL Foundation.
The HCL Foundation currently runs programs in more than 103 districts across 20 Indian states and 3 Union Territories, focusing on various social causes. These programs are implemented in collaboration with local NGOs. HCL Foundation provides financial assistance ranging from ₹50 lakh to ₹5 crore to these organizations to support different social initiatives.
Starting this year, HCL Foundation has increased its minimum grant amount for NGOs from ₹25 lakh to ₹50 lakh. This means that no NGO will now receive a grant of less than ₹50 lakh. This announcement was made during a seminar organized in MANIT Bhopal by the HCL Foundation.
During the “HCL Tech Grant” seminar, Robin Sarkar and Robin Thomas shared that since 2011, HCL Foundation has been consistently running various welfare programs under CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) in India and abroad. So far, over ₹200 crore has been invested in areas like health, education, women empowerment, skill development, and environmental sustainability.
HCL Foundation is also working to improve living standards and create employment opportunities in urban and rural regions. Some of the prominent programs run by the foundation include My Clean City, Academy, Uday, Shiksha, Private Art Museum, My E-Haat, and Sorkha Upvan.
At the seminar, several HCL Foundation representatives such as Shailee Kaushal, Rimisha Nag, Dr. Smita (CSR Box), Dr. Prajnal Saxena, Dr. Shafia Wani, Pulkit Sapra, Dr. Nitya Shri Sangath, Dr. Vishwas, and Vishal Singh Baghel explained in detail the procedures and guidelines for NGOs to apply for grants.
Subject experts and faculty members from MACT, including Prof. Amit Banerjee, Dr. Surabhi Mehrotra, Dr. Khushali Pandey, and Dr. Yadav, also shared their insights during the event.
The seminar witnessed participation from a large number of representatives from various districts of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, and other states.
It is worth noting that the HCL Foundation has previously organized similar seminars in Ranchi, Ahmedabad, Jodhpur, Sikkim, Pune, Gangtok, and Bhopal to explain the grant process to NGOs. The next seminar is scheduled to be held in Delhi.
( Amitabh Pandey is a senior Journalist. Contact: 9424466269 )
