NEW DELHI: One of the richest men in the world, Gautam Adani and his family have committed Rs 60k crores for social causes on the occasion of the centenary birth anniversary of his father Shantilal Adani and his 60th birthday. The corpus will be utilized in healthcare, education, and skill development and will be managed by the Adani Foundation.
“In addition to being the 100th birth anniversary of my inspiring father, this year also happens to be the year of my 60th birthday and therefore the family decided to contribute Rs 60,000 crores towards charitable activities related to healthcare, education, and skill development, especially in the rural regions of our nation”. Adani, Chairman of the Adani Group, said.
A first-generation entrepreneur from Gujarat, Adani will celebrate his birthday on Friday. He will join the list of billionaires like Mark Zuckerberg and Warren Buffett who have committed large parts of their wealth to philanthropy. The tycoon’s commitment is almost half of what Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates donated to their foundation in 2021.
Speaking on this occasion, Azim Premji, chairman of Azim Premji Foundation and founder chairman of Wipro Limited, said, “Gautam Adani and his family’s commitment towards philanthropy should set an example that we can all try to live Mahatma Gandhi’s principle of Trusteeship of Wealth at the peak of our business success and need not wait for our sunset years”.
Premji, who is recognised as one of the greatest philanthropists in the country, said, “The challenges and possibilities of our country demand that we work together as one, cutting across all divides of wealth, region, religion, caste, and more.”
Started as an agri-trading firm in 1988, the Adani group has now turned into a conglomerate that spans coal trading, mining, logistics, power generation and distribution. More recently, it has forayed into green energy, airports, data centres and cement. Last year, Adani had committed to invest USD 70 billion by 2030 to make his group the world’s largest renewable energy producer.
Over the years, the Adani Foundation, led by his wife Priti, has responded to society’s changing needs in alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – be it sustainable livelihoods, health and nutrition, and education for all or addressing environmental concerns – with an enhanced focus on the empowerment of women, working with multiple stakeholders at the grassroots. Today, it covers 3.7 million people in 2,409 villages across 16 states in India.