MUMBAI, June 14: Tata Trusts is set to increase its annual philanthropic spending to around Rs 2,000 crore in the current fiscal year, up from approximately Rs 1,600 crore in FY2025-26, according to Siddhartha Sharma, CEO of Tata Trusts.
In a LinkedIn post, Sharma highlighted the scale and impact of the Trusts’ philanthropic initiatives while expressing concern that public discourse and media attention often overlook the organization’s core work in nation-building and social development.
Sharma said Tata Trusts, established in 1892, has long deployed dividend income received as the majority shareholder of Tata Sons toward social causes, well before corporate social responsibility (CSR) became mandatory in India.
“As the majority shareholders in Tata Sons, we deploy, year after year, the dividends that we receive into philanthropic causes that uplift those at society’s margins and help build a nation. This predates, by 122 years, the CSR mandate that was introduced in 2014 for Indian business,” he said.
According to Sharma, the Trusts spent approximately Rs 1,600 crore on philanthropic activities in FY2025-26 and plans to raise the outlay to Rs 2,000 crore during the current financial year.
“For FY2025-26 alone, the philanthropic spending of the Tata Trusts was approximately Rs 1,600 crore, slated to go up to Rs 2,000 crore in the current fiscal,” he said.
The CEO said the spending has supported affordable cancer care facilities in states including Assam, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, in addition to contributing to rural livelihood programs, healthcare, nutrition, education, skilling, and scholarship initiatives across the country.
He noted that the Trusts have worked to “raise the standards of living of millions of Indians through rural livelihood interventions” and have strengthened healthcare delivery, employability programs, and educational outcomes through investments in foundational learning and skill development.
Sharma also outlined several upcoming and ongoing projects, including a proposed collaboration with a reputed educational institution to establish a world-class undergraduate university, support for a multispecialty hospital in Central India, funding for agricultural and genomics research, and grants for research and resilience initiatives at IIT Mandi and IIT Madras.
Commenting on media coverage of the organization, Sharma said that while certain narratives often gain attention, the Trusts remain focused on their social mission.
“I do understand that much of our media today feeds on TRPs and dishes out news that sells, amplifying certain narratives, unfortunately, at times, without verification and analysis,” he wrote.
Emphasizing the Trusts’ approach to philanthropy, Sharma said, “The Tata Trusts are continuing to do what they do best — serving those at the margins of society. No hype, no publicity; only solid, hard work. Everything else is noise.”
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