The genesis of the Centre
for Advancement of Philanthropy lies in the Workshop on Corporate
Philanthropy, sponsored jointly by the centre for Policy Research
and the Ford Foundation and which was held in New Delhi on October
14-15, 1985. The participants included, D. Lincoln Chen, Mr.
S. K. Comal, Mr. Gurucharan Das, Lala Bansi Dhar, Dr. R. K. Hazari,
Mr. L. C. Jain, Mr. R. M. Lala, Mr. Shrenik Lalbhai, Dr. V. A. Pai
Panandikar, Prof. Manubhai Shah, Mr. P. L. Tandon, Mr. A. J. Tauro,
Mr. Kishore Saint, Mr. Arvind A. Deshpande, Mr. Taurun Sheth, Mr.
Darius Forbes, Dr. S. R. Ganesh & others.
In his inaugural and thought
provoking address the eminent jurist, Late Mr. Nani Palkhivala stressed
the role of philanthropy in a democratic society and mentioned that,
in a work-shop held recently on the subject in Britain, corporate
philanthropy had been raised to the status of the “Fifth Estate”.
He was of the view that the work “corporate” should, for the purposes
of the ensuing discussion, be interpreted in the broader sense of
any enterprise giving voluntarily for a public purpose. Similarly,
the word “philanthropy” had a much wider connotation than charity.
Accordingly, corporate philanthropy assumes a greater importance
than those individual acts of charity. Inasmuch as corporation
can provide or mobilise human and financial resources for philanthropy
and is also able to provide leadership and organisation which are
necessary to translate philanthropy into public good, corporate
philanthropy can have a profound influence over the growth and development
of a nation. Indeed, if properly managed in a spirit of dedication,
energy, service, and duty, corporate philanthropy can emerge as
a powerful tool for public benefit and social change.
As a follow up the workshop
set up a small committee to explore the idea further and draw up
a specific proposal for the creation of an appropriate organisation.
The committee, which consisted of Mr. Shrenik K. Lalbhai, Chairman,
Mr. Arvind A. Deshpande, Convenor, and Mr.. M. Lala, Mr. Darius
Forbess and Mr. Ravi Narain, Program Consultant, Ford Foundation,
recommended setting up of a centre.
Thus the Centre for Advancement
of Philanthropy was set up on November 7 , 1986.
CAP is registered as a not-for-profit organization under section
25 of the Indian Companies Act. CAP enjoys tax exemption as charity
under Section 80-G of the Income Tax Act.
Late H. T. Parekh (Hasmukhbhai)
our Guide and Mentor
Our Founder Chairman was
none other than Mr H T Parekh who is considered the pioneer and
architect of the modern Indian financial system. It was he who shaped
two of India’s largest and most respected financial institutions
– ICICI and HDFC.
Today, CAP has earned recognition
not only in India but also abroad. CAP is privileged and grateful
to have received over the years, the support of various Tata companies
and trusts, Forbes Marshal, HDFC and more recently the Ford Foundation.
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2002 - Centre for Advancement of Philanthropy. All rights reserved.
