Software major Wipro founder Azim Premji’s name has become synonymous to philanthropy in India so much so that he earned the title of India’s most generous philanthropist billionaire in 2021. The industrialist retained the title for the second straight year as he topped the EdelGive Hurun India Philanthropy List 2021.
Premji’s donations during the fiscal 2020-21 surpassed that of RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani, HCL founder chairman Shiv Nadar, Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani, Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani, among others. With a total donation of a tad less than £1 billion in FY 2021, Premji gave away nearly £2.7 million a day in donations.
The septuagenarian was in his early 20s when he took charge of the company after his father M.H. Hasham Premji’s demise.
Azim Premji Foundation
It was 11 years ago that Premji established the Azim Premji Foundation in 2001. The not-for-profit organization focused on enhancing quality and equity in India’s public school system. The Foundation works with over 350,000 schools across seven Indian states. It also runs the Azim Premji University, which focuses on teaching and research programs in education and other areas of human development.
The industrialist’s $15 billion donation to the Foundation’s endowment makes it one of the largest foundations in the world. While he is widely known for his charitable works, the billionaire philanthropist is the first Indian recipient of the Faraday Medal. He was also awarded honorary doctorates by Michigan State University, Wesleyan University, and the Indian Institutes of Technology at Bombay, Roorkee, and Kharagpur, among others.
Premji is also the recipient of the Republic of France’s highest civilian award, Knight of the Legion of Honor. In January 2011, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian award.
