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Chapter 5 Business & Community

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Chapter 5 Business & Community

Business community

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5

Corporate Philanthropy (1941–1960)

I
The years 1914–1947 saw momentous changes within and with-
out India. Within, it saw the transformation of traditional merchant
communities into modern industrial groups and an expansion of the
entrepreneurial base; it also saw the intensification of the freedom
struggle as well as communal tensions, culminating in Independence
and the Partition of India. Without, there were two world wars
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and the emergence of communism, new technology and modern-

ist movements in intellectual and artistic fields. All left an indelible
impact not only on Indian economy and society but also on business
engagement with society.
Unquestionably, the most important influences on Indian business
relations with the community before Independence were an expan-
sion in business opportunities resulting in the foundation of several
industrial empires all over India; nationalist aspirations manifested in
the freedom struggle; and Gandhian thought and example. After Inde-
pendence the desire for rapid progress on the part of all—government,
the people and the business community—acted as a spur for business
to contribute more for social development. And throughout, a positive
state attitude towards business encouraged business philanthropy.
Under ordinary circumstances there may have been a gap of sev-
eral generations before the newly rich industrialists thought of using

Sundar, Pushpa. Business and Community : The Story of Corporate Social Responsibility in India, SAGE
Publications India Pvt, Ltd., 2013. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/nmims-ebooks/detail.action?docID=1135648.
Created from nmims-ebooks on 2023-11-09 00:37:07.
116 Business and Community

their accumulated wealth for public purposes. But it was an extraor-

dinary period which called forth an extraordinary response from all
sections of Indian society. The result was an outpouring not only
of charity but of philanthropy on a scale not witnessed before, and
maybe not even since.
Several characteristics of the business community of the period
were also conducive to the growth of philanthropy and engagement
with the society.

Characteristics of the Business Community

Joint family values

With the exception of MNCs and a few other such businesses, most
of the big business groups were family owned and controlled and
continued to follow traditional management styles, though they had
modernized in many other respects. In keeping with joint family val-
ues, the pace and standards were set by the head of the family who,
in business, as in family life, acted as the karta (executive trustee).
Thus, the personal characteristics and inclinations of the founder
owners counted for a lot, and given the ethos of the time, many of
these leaders were inclined to espouse social causes.
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Simple lifestyle

Though men of great wealth, the founding fathers of industry them-

selves led simple lives, without an ostentatious display of wealth. This
was particularly true of the Marwaris and other Hindu industrialists.
Lala Shri Ram, founder of the Sri Ram group for instance, believed
in austerity because ‘Extravagant social functions are an anomaly
among a people struggling with stern tasks of reconstruction’ (Joshi
1975: 688).
He felt simple living on the part of the well-to-do will tend to
reduce discontent amongst the poorer sections. Writing to Acharya
Narendra Dev he said, ‘Once simple living becomes fashionable and
there is some sort of security for various needs, perhaps the greed for

possession of money may not occupy the same high place in society
as it does today’ (Joshi 1975: 684).
He was not alone in leading a frugal lifestyle, the other side of
which was to give generously to charitable causes. Ahmedabad, in
contrast to Bombay or Calcutta, continued to be a city which had not
lost its traditional identity and been swept overboard by the West. It
continued to value traditional culture, social responsibility and social
harmony, and the wealthy seths of Ahmedabad seldom flaunted their
wealth vulgarly. It is recounted of Kasturbhai Lalbhai that if asked to
use good paper and envelope to write a note to a friend, he would
refuse, but would gladly agree to donate `2 million to start a college!

Deeply religious

A second striking characteristic of the emerging Indian capitalist

class was the deep religious faith of the new entrepreneurs which
went hand in hand with liberal ideas. One aspect of this was a con-
cern with ethics and moral behaviour. G. D. Birla, the doyen of
Indian industrialists, and popularly known as ‘G. D.’ confessed that
Gandhi’s influence over him was because religion was Gandhi’s main
absorption, as was his own. He wrote,
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I come of a family of merchants which has a tradition of Sanatan

Dharma, the eternal religion of duty. My grandfather and those like
him may be compared to the Quakers in England and America.
Like the Quakers, they prospered miraculously in business, but
considered it their duty to spend freely on good works. Like the
Quakers they were not ‘orthodox’, that is to say they were not
bound rigidly by caste restrictions.

He continues, ‘Gandhiji’s influence over me was more through his

religious character—his sincerity and search for truth—than his
power as a political leader’.1

1
The quotes are from Shri Ghanashyam Das Birla Eightieth Birthday
Commemoration Volume Committee (1977: 244–245).

G. D. derived his faith and ideals from his father and grandfather
and his own deep study of Indian scriptures. He did not favour tra-
ditional religion but believed in Dharma and its ideals of duty and
action. His respect for religion was not confined to his own, but
extended to all, though his ethical framework was essentially Hindu
and not Western as in the case of the Tatas and other Parsi business
families.
Though a Vaishya by birth, he didn’t believe in money making
for its own sake. Very rich, he lived simply and according to the
tenets of his religion and culture. He used to say, ‘To be rich is
nothing great. Marwaris in Calcutta consider money to be their sum-
mum bonum—a sorry state of affairs. I have learnt that money is
not a great thing. Learn art, acquire knowledge and concentrate on
devotion.’

Concern with ethics

Like him, there were others who were religious but not doctrinaire,
and were very concerned with preserving and propagating moral and
ethical values. Principled and very conscious of business ethics from
the beginning, Jamnalal Bajaj put an end to the practice of wetting
cotton bales before sale and other such unethical practices. He be-
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lieved that there must be a higher goal in life than the mere accumu-
lation of wealth. For him it was important that wealth was virtuously
created through honesty, integrity and fair trade practices, and once
created, utilized for the public good.
When it was suggested to Lala Shri Ram that Jay Engineering
Works should make profits by wartime speculation in buying and
selling scrap, his response was:

No doubt, in whatever we do, the money motive is there, but

there is a better motive and that is to serve the country by produc-
ing things which have not yet been produced. If I had cared in
my life to get rich quick, I might perhaps have taken to specula-
tion and the Stock Exchange and become a multi-millionaire or a
beggar. (Ray 1982: 267)

Though very secular in his outlook, with many Muslim friends,

Lala Shri Ram firmly believed that religion alone could provide a
stable underpinning to society. He feared the breakdown of custom,
decency and restraint, and saw deterioration in morals in all walks of
life. He felt such a state of affairs was due to the want of a religious
background and faith and considered it necessary to promote old
values which were disappearing and no new sanctions, social or po-
litical, were taking their place. He once remarked,

It gladdens my heart to see that the Indian is still at heart a be-

liever in God and religion. That is the only thing that might save
the country. The reconstruction of a new India depends on a new
valuation of life or rather on reverting to the old values that made
our country great. (Joshi 1975: 686–687)

It was not surprising, therefore, that while Hindu businessmen

gave freely for the good of society, their philanthropic projects in-
cluded building and preserving temples, propagation of Hindu phi-
losophy, art and culture, and traditional charity continued to coexist
with modern philanthropy.
This firm belief in ethics and values on the part of the founding
fathers of India’s industry is worth remembering today, when corpo-
rate scam after scam raises its ugly head, especially because they were
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equally committed to India’s economic progress as today’s business

community.

Desire for industrial progress

The deeply religious, conservative merchant entrepreneurs desired

economic development for removing poverty and social misery
in India, quite as much as the highly educated intellectuals from
the professional classes who took the political lead before and
after Independence. Walchand Hirachand, in the words of his
biographer Khanolkar, ‘took industry for his god, and ceaseless striv-
ing after the country’s industrialization for his religion’ (Khanolkar
1969: 591).

Speaking at the Dena Bank in Sholapur in 1943, Walchand said:

I long for the day when we shall have India-made motor-cars,

locomotives, railway coaches, tramways, buses, aeroplanes, ships,
electrical goods, machinery, and the thousand and one things for
which we have to depend on imports. When that consummation
is realized, I assure you Gentlemen, there will not be a beggar
asking for alms, the standard of living of our countrymen would
have risen tremendously and to the level obtainable in prosperous
countries such as the USA, poverty would have been a thing of
the past, and everywhere there would be plenty and prosperity
(Khanolkar 1969: xxxvii–xxxviii).

Though Walchand came from a devout Jain family and his wife
gave generous financial assistance to her community’s religious and
educational needs, he himself held very unconventional views for a
man of his time and background. He had the greatest contempt for
alms and gifts in the name of religion. Charity, Walchand felt, must
change its shape to match the country’s requirements. The need, he
said, was not for more new places of worship, hermitages, bathing
places, etc., but for more new places of learning, factories, experi-
mental laboratories and halls of science. The stream of the coun-
try’s wealth must be diverted to the establishing of these things. He
believed wealth should be used for all round development of the
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nation. Therefore, though he gave liberally during calamities and to

various national movements, he derived the most satisfaction from
spending his wealth for industrial training.
He did not set up any formal mechanism for this, but in order
to provide for the mechanics, technologists, chemists and engineers
needed for the basic industries which he cherished the ambition of
starting in his country, he sent abroad many promising youngsters
from his companies at his own cost. Similarly, G. D. Birla’s mission
in life was to effect an industrial revolution in the lives of his fel-
low countrymen. Like Jamsetji Tata, he realized that India’s freedom
could not be achieved or maintained by political means alone, and
that strength would come only from industrialization and adoption
of modern science and technology. In the forward he wrote for the
book India Progressing, G. D. Birla said:

It has been the policy of the House of Birlas not to build up busi-
ness just to accumulate capital, but to develop unexplored lines,
harness the undeveloped resources of the country, promote know
how, create skilled labour and managerial traits, spread education
and add to the efforts of the leaders of the country, who through-
out this period have been struggling to build a new, independent
India, free from want, the scourge of unemployment, ignorance
and disease. (Ramanujam 1993: 108)

Even as late as the 1960s, Milton Singer reported that industrial-

ists of Madras, whether Hindu, Muslim or Christian, saw industrial
leadership as their mission and a moral duty, and their performance
of their duty itself a philanthropic act, especially where it was per-
formed without appropriating all the fruits for themselves. It was
considered philanthropic because it provided vital income and
employment to the poor, and necessary products to consumers
(Singer 1972).
In Calcutta similar views were voiced by B. M. Birla who often
remarked to other industrialists that ‘If we really want to serve the
poor, we shall have to produce wealth in a large measure to make
people prosperous, and undertake social service programmes so that
the country may make progress. This will be the best service to the
country’ (Taknet 1996: 52).
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Faith in education

Many of the pioneers were self-made men with little education, with
the exception of the Tatas, and the later technocrat entrepreneurs. In
spite of, or perhaps because of, that they placed a great deal of impor-
tance on education as the golden key which would unlock the doors
of prosperity and progress. Their vision was to move India from a
backward, agricultural and tradition-bound society to a strong mod-
ern one. They realized that this required a massive infusion of social
as well as economic investment. Therefore, education, and especially
vocational and technical education, scientific and medical research,
and activities for women’s emancipation were given a great deal of
importance by them.

Personal involvement

In spite of the heavy odds, such as stiff competition and discrimina-

tion from foreign industry, against which they struggled to set up
industries, many of the pioneers found the time to play an active part
and take a personal interest in civic, political and community ac-
tivities. Businessmen like Damodar Thakersay, Ranchodlal Chotalal,
Kasturbhai Lalbhai, Lala Shri Ram, Raja Sir Annamalai Chettiar and
his son Sir Mutthia Chettiar were all active in caste associations, as
leaders of their community, in civic bodies, and sometimes, also in
politics. In some families, sons picked up their father’s mantle of
involvement in public life, thereby starting a dynastic tradition. This
was particularly true of Thakersay and Annamalai Chettiar.
Unlike the trend in the West at the time, there was no divorce of
personal involvement from disbursement of money. Though they set
up charitable trusts to promote philanthropy, more often the trusts,
rather than giving away money to others, engaged in charitable
work themselves and established and operated major institutions
in the running of which the donors played an active and leading
part. Through his Shiksha Mandal, founded in 1915, Jamnalal
Bajaj started several schools and colleges in which he took a personal
interest. He visited the schools and hostels frequently, kept in touch
with teachers, went on picnics with the children and even dined in
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the hostel to check the quality of food served to the children (Nanda
1990: 20–21).
Similarly, Lala Shri Ram took a personal interest in the building
and operation of the Lady Shri Ram College for Girls.

Reform-minded

Leading businessmen of the time like G. D. Birla, J. R. D Tata,

Jamnalal Bajaj, Lala Shri Ram and others were also reform mind-
ed, particularly in relation to women’s emancipation and caste
restrictions, though, sadly, it was not true of the bulk of the business
community. As leader of the reformist section of the Marwari com-
munity G. D. Birla faced a boycott from the orthodox elements for
his espousal of causes like widow remarriage, opposition to giving

and receiving of dowry and observance of meaningless rituals. Later,

as a devoted Gandhian, he worked actively for removal of untouch-
ability and upliftment of Harijans. He became President of the All
India Harijan Sevak Samaj and spent a lot of time in its activities.
In 1933 he walked from door to door for two days in Delhi to fur-
ther the Harijan cause and took a whirlwind tour of South India to
persuade rulers and administrators of some important princely states
to throw open temples to Harjans, travelling 200 miles a day and
addressing public meetings. In 1932, at his instance, Harijans were
given free access to Birla schools and colleges and hostels were also
built for them.

Sense of social responsibility

The enlightened attitudes of several of the business leaders of the

time were visible in their consciousness of the need for business to be
socially responsible and of the obligation it owed to society. Jamnalal
Bajaj was disturbed at the growing tendency towards extravagant
living and dissipation among wealthy Marwaris as well as other per-
nicious practices like child marriage, caste segregation and untouch-
ability. Speaking at the Aggarwal Mahasabha Conference in 1926
in Delhi, he talked of the social responsibility of businessmen long
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before any one else had thought of the phrase. He questioned the
common belief that businessmen were free to make money any way
they could, and took them to task:

Our complaint against the British is that they take away wealth
from our country.… A similar charge can be laid against us
(the Marwaris). We should therefore look to the interests of the
province, region or society in the midst of which we earn our
living and, whenever necessary, we should serve it with all our
heart. (Nanda 1990: 146)

There was, he felt, a lack of self-esteem and self-confidence among

businessmen, and put it down to excessive greed. According to him
it was in their own interest to be more caring for society. At the same
meeting he said:

We do not realize the need for seeking the sympathy of the com-
mon people; we do not even try for it. If we do our business in
accordance with an accepted code of ethics, we will win not only
the sympathy, but the respect of the society and the country. The
more we are with the people, the less afraid we will be of the of-
ficials. (Nanda 1990: 147)

His advice to his fellow businessmen was: ‘Our wealth should

be utilized for improving the quality of the society and the nation.
We should never fail to spend at least a portion of our incomes on
the social, economic and educational development of the province
where we live’ (Nanda 1990: 147).
Lala Shri Ram too advocated socially responsible behaviour. Ac-
cording to him, ‘A person having wealth should not, merely because
of his wealth, have status and power in life. On the other hand,
the giving away of wealth for charitable purposes should become
fashionable’ (Joshi 1975: 632).
Equally, B. M. Birla was known to say:

Profit cannot be an end in itself. If the river (business) has water

(profit), it should be used for watering plants, setting up public
water huts, offering it to Mahadeo, as well as for quenching the
thirst of the people. It is then alone that profit making has any
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worth and meaning. (Taknet 1996: 52)

Four other factors influenced the business and community en-

gagement in this period, namely, the freedom struggle, social reform
and social work, and charity reform.

Factors Influencing the Business and

Community Engagement
Freedom struggle

From its inception, the freedom movement in general and the Indian
National Congress in particular was dependent for financial support
on the big industrialists as well as the small merchants.

However, the contributions which the business community made

to the nationalist cause were neither entirely political nor entirely
monetary and could not be construed as ‘political donations’ in
the narrow sense of the term, because the nationalist movement
had a dimension broader than the merely political. It encompassed
economic, social and cultural issues like women’s emancipation,
nationalist education, revival of Indian art, building a strong tech-
nological base for the economy to take it into the modern era and
so on. As observed earlier, many industrialists saw the setting up
of indigenous industries itself as a patriotic act. In the extraordi-
nary circumstances of the times, the line between politics and social
responsibility had become blurred, because social reform, cultural
revival, economic development and political emancipation were very
closely enmeshed.
Contributions to funds like the Tilak Swarajya Fund were un-
doubtedly for political purposes, but they were also meant to pro-
mote social causes like sponsoring community festivals to enhance
community cohesiveness, to meet distress relief and so on. For in-
stance, in 1920, Ardeshir Godrej, the eccentric but generous founder
of the Godrej Group who had very definite views on the disposal of
wealth, donated `300,000 to the Tilak Swarajya Fund (current value
over `30 million) earmarked for banishing liquor and the uplift of
Harijans. It brought forth fulsome praise from Mahatma Gandhi
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who said:

Mr Godrej of the safe fame has eclipsed all donations to the

Tilak Swaraj Fund with his announcement of three lakhs of ru-
pees. His donations to public purposes have been hitherto quite
unknown. (meaning anonymous). But he was induced to appre-
ciate the necessity this time of a public announcement. I tender
my congratulations to Mr. Godrej and the whole Parsi community.
I wish also to testify that during the collection week in Bombay,
not a day has passed without Parsi donations. (Karanajia 1997:
61–62)

The two Kirloskar brothers, Laxmanrao and Ramchandrarao,

were among Tilak’s earliest supporters, and though theirs was only a

small business at the time, they subscribed to Tilak’s newspaper Kesri

lifelong and gave him other help (Piramal 1991: 160–161).
Revival of cultural pride was manifested in the establishment
of a number of educational and cultural institutions which had
an underlying nationalist ethos, like the Benaras Hindu University,
the Aligarh Muslim University, Shantiniketan, Kalakshetra, Indian
National Theatre as well as museums and history societies. All of
these were generously supported by many businessmen. Large col-
lections of Indian art were made by some big industrialists who then
made them over to a museum or art gallery.

Social reform

Meanwhile, social reform had proceeded apace, directed at waste-

ful expenditure on marriage and funeral feasts, outcasting and other
penalties for travel abroad. But most of all, it was directed towards
improving women’s social position in society, affected by practices
like polygamy, child marriages, prohibition of widow remarriage,
dedication of girls to temples and lack of education.
Though later than in other communities, a movement for mod-
ernization swept the Marwaris between the two world wars. It was in
the wake of such modernization that sections of them had turned to
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industry. But there was a division in their ranks: one group, led by Sir
Badridas Goenka, remained socially conservative, loyal to the British
and anti-nationalist, and the other, led by G. D. Birla moved into
industry, supported the nationalist movement and was socially more
progressive. It campaigned for widow remarriage and other reform
measures.
The result of the social reform movements all over India was a
proliferation of schools and colleges for girls, widows’ homes (many
set up and run by widows themselves), homes to rehabilitate desti-
tute women, women’s health organizations and associations to fight
for the women’s vote. Even the first women’s university was set up
in 1916 by D. K. Karve and was later endowed by Sir Thakersey
in memory of his mother, Shrimati Nathibai Damodar Thakersay.
Accordingly, it is today referred to as SNDT University.

Social work

A new category of social action called ‘social work’ or ‘social

service’ had also emerged in the inter-war years. Earlier charitable
work, though voluntary, was generally ad hoc and mostly ameliora-
tive. It continued to be a mostly voluntary activity, till the 1960s,
though some charitable organizations offered paid positions. But the
noticeable change was in the professional approach now adopted to
doing good, with a thrust on prevention, rather than on relief.
Outstanding examples of the new approach were the preven-
tive work done in maternal, infant and child welfare fields by the
Bombay Presidency Infant Welfare Society under the leadership of
Lady Cowasji Jehangir and Sir Mangaldas Mehta, and the work for
prevention of juvenile delinquency by the Society for Protection of
Children in Western India, led by Sir Rustom and Lady Masani.
Organizations like the Social Service League, the YMCA, the YWCA
and the Nagpada Neighbourhood House in Bombay pioneered in-
dustrial welfare work among residents of congested urban areas and
sought to remove the conditions which prevented the development
of these areas and their residents. Similar organizations appeared in
other cities.
In all these social reform and social welfare activities many leading
industrialists participated personally and/or financially supported
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the organizations through which they were conducted.

Women of the business aristocracy, especially wives of leading
Parsi industrialists, were in the vanguard of such social work, among
them were Lady Ratan Tata, Lady Cowasji Jehangir and Jerbai Wadia
of the House of Wadia in Bombay, and Swarnakumari Debi of the
elite Tagore family in Calcutta.

Charity reform

At the same time, organized charity was in disarray. Each community

gave to, and looked after its own, and the idea of giving to anyone
in need, irrespective of caste or creed was not widespread, though
Jamsetji Tata, Nowrojee Wadia and some others had tried to set a

different example. Amongst the Parsis a plethora of Parsi charities

had pauperized a section of the community instead of regenerating
it. People applied to a multitude of charities and managed to live on
the dole instead of helping themselves. This was possible because
there was little cooperation between charities. In 1919, a society
called Parsi Charity Organization was started to investigate cases ap-
plying for charity, but not much was done to reform the organiza-
tion of charities, to coordinate efforts, pool resources or rehabilitate
families living on the dole. The situation in other communities was
the same or even worse, since they were even less organized than the
Parsi community.
Social reformers of the times as well as the more enlightened busi-
ness leaders of the time were exercised about this state of religious
and secular charity and deemed existing practices of charity to be
wasteful and inefficient. They sought to change them through an
active public discourse and action. Consequently, the tradition-
al modes of giving were creatively transmuted into newer, more
efficient and ‘progressive’ forms. Charity became more oriented to
human and temporal ends characterized by social service and giving
for educational work and relief during famines (Carey Watt 2005).
The Arya Samaj, the Theosophical Society and Servants of India
Society in particular were responsible for changing public attitudes
away from giving for religious projects to secular nation building
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kind of activity, especially education for women, social reform of

all kinds and for achievement of national freedom. The late nine-
teenth and early twentieth century thus saw the emergence of two
trends—one, democratization and secularization of charity and two,
the emergence of modern philanthropy as newly wealthy business
families established dynastic philanthropic traditions. The growth
of an associational culture, coupled with religious and social reform
movements, offered ordinary individuals opportunities to partici-
pate in secularized, collective and organized undertakings intended
to benefit much bigger trans-regional groups of communities.
The new type of active charity was supported by novel techniques
of fundraising which targeted not only the rich but also petty bour-
geois groups and the poor, as evidenced by the fund raising cam-
paign for Benaras Hindu University then being established under the

leadership of Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya. Even peons, clerks and

students as well as the wealthy and all classes and castes were encour-
aged to contribute, and did, amounts ranging from several paise to
lakhs of rupees (Carey Watt 2005).
Alongside began the trend of setting up big foundations to give to
good causes. Sir Dorab and Sir Ratan proved to be worthy sons of a
worthy father, and they, among others, gave thought to, and set an
example by pioneering modern foundations in India which were dif-
ferent from the earlier charitable trusts in the way they approached
the utilization of wealth. Just how they differed from others is dis-
cussed in a later section.

The influence of Gandhi

Undoubtedly, the single most important factor influencing business

philanthropy in the pre-Independence period was the emergence
in the 1920s of Mahatma Gandhi as a political and social leader.
Many of the nascent nationalists among the business community
gravitated towards him from the time he appeared on the political
scene. When Gandhi landed in Bombay from South Africa in 1915,
Narottam Morarjee, son of Morarjee Goculdas who was a leading
Bombay mill owner, was among those who received him. Later,
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when Gandhi needed help in founding the Sabarmati Ashram

at Ahmedabd, Narottam was ready with a substantial donation
(Piramal 1991: 162).
Gandhi was as committed to the social regeneration of India as he
was to securing India’s political freedom. For him, politics and social
reform were but two sides of the same coin and political indepen-
dence could have no meaning without a social uplift of the poor and
downtrodden, especially women and untouchables. His concept of
Sarvodaya, meaning the good of all or advancement of all, embodied
an ideal social order based on love, in which there would be room for
all, rich and poor, high and low, touchable and untouchable, Hindu,
and Muslim; where there would be no class, caste or exploitation,
but equality; where the strong protect the weak, and each lives for all,
promoting welfare of all through service and self-sacrifice.

Gandhi’s leadership of the struggle and emphasis on constructive

work for Sarvodaya led to a social awakening among women and
the untouchables, and introduced large segments of the population
to the need for rural reconstruction, women’s emancipation and
improvement in the lives of the untouchables. For the first time
problems of the villages came into public gaze. Before Gandhi, the
few experiments at rural development such as those at Marthandam
in Kerala were at the behest of Christian missions. Now, thanks
to Gandhi, several rural reconstruction organizations came up op-
erating on Gandhian principles of simplicity, non-violence and self
reliance.
As mentioned earlier, the merchant communities were deeply
religious and attached to their traditional culture. Gandhian princi-
ples appealed to them as being in line with their own cultural
and religious orientation. Under the stimulus of racial animosity,
and Gandhi’s charm, this attachment, especially in Hindu–Jain
businessmen, turned into a defensive nationalist reaction and
expressed itself in their qualified acceptance of the Swadeshi ideal as
defined by Gandhi, including use of khadi, protection of cows and
uplift of the depressed classes. Because Gandhi appealed to them in
a familiar religious idiom, people came to believe that supporting
the political and social concerns associated with nationalism, such
as ‘national’ education, was a dharmic (sacred) duty. This appealed
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to many traditional business leaders who contributed generously to

such causes. For instance in Surat, when the National Education
Society organized ‘national schools’ in 1922 in an attempt to supplant
Government run schools, Gandhians responsible for the move
appealed for funds on the ground that the cause was more sacred
and deserving than festivals and temples. Merchants from Surat and
Bombay answered these appeals by providing funds necessary for the
education of 5,000 pupils for more than 2 years. Some made special
contributions on occasions such as marriages within the family or
visits of nationalist leaders.
Many prosperous merchants handed over their homes for use as
school buildings. In keeping with the tradition of collective philan-
thropy, many of the mahajans of cotton and grain merchants of Surat
who had cess for temples or panjrapoles directed their cess away from

these to the National Education Society. Consequently, the national

schools had a steady source of funds which would otherwise have
been absent if they had to rely only on voluntary contributions
(Haynes 1987: 356).
Gandhi also reinterpreted the old concept of daan in his theory
of trusteeship which has been noticed in some detail in chapter 2,
and which he held up as an ideal to be approximated by business.
Gandhiji disliked the inequalities in society and wanted an egalitar-
ian society as much as the socialists. But he was practical enough to
see that a truly classless society was impossible. Nor was he against
private property which he felt conferred Independence on owners
and should be encouraged, though he believed that property should
be acquired only by fair and ethical means, and limitations should
be put on property which otherwise gave the owners power over
others.
Further, Gandhi felt that capitalists, if needled, would only orga-
nize themselves and establish Fascism. With his faith in non-violent
means of change, he did not endorse socialism which could usher in
class wars. Instead, he wanted a non-violent change of heart on the
part of capitalists who should voluntarily renounce a part of their
wealth for the good of the others, and act as trustees of their wealth,
administering it for the good of society. Voluntary trusteeship was to
be reinforced by non-cooperation or satyagraha, electoral pressure,
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legislation and, as a last resort, minimum violence by the state to

enforce a desired change.
In fact, the theory of trusteeship attracted the capitalists precisely
because it held no immediate threat to the capitalist system which
was experiencing severe strain due to the spread of communism.
According to Gandhi, trusteeship was not the same as philanthropy
or paternalism. The liberty of the people should not depend on the
will of an individual or a group of individuals, but be theirs as right.
Wealth should be used for the benefit of others, but not as charity,
because it belongs to them. He wanted trusteeship to be an atti-
tude of mind and a way of life which limited wants and needs. A
trustee of wealth, according to him, should work hard according to
his entire skill and capacity, increase the earning and value of the
‘trust’ property as much as he can, and charge only that much from

the trust property as it is absolutely essential for his subsistence and

honourable living.
He therefore exhorted businessmen to give for the good of society
and to involve themselves in uplift of the downtrodden. He said, ‘To
my mind, as soon as a man looks upon himself as a servant of society,
earns for its sake, spends for its sake, then his earnings are good and
his business venture is constructive’ (Upadhyaya 1976: vi).
Gandhi used every occasion to convert the capitalists to his views.
Invited to inaugurate the annual session of Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) in 1931, Gandhi ex-
horted businessmen thus: ‘You should regard yourselves as trustees
and servants of the poor. Your commerce must be regulated for the
benefit of the toiling millions and you must be satisfied with earning
an honest penny’ (Joshi 1975: 226).
The Ahmedabad millowners, most of whom were Jain and
Vaishnava Banias, were the first to come under his spell, partly
because he had settled among them, and partly because he seemed
to personify the Vaishnava–Jain ethos. Not only traditional minded
businessmen like Mangaldas Girdharidas and Kasturbhai Lalbhai,
but also more westernized individuals like Ambalal Sarabhai were
drawn to him. Ambalal, who did not always see eye to eye with
Gandhi, nevertheless opened his purse strings for Gandhi and his
work. He is reputed to have made an anonymous donation to save the
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Sabarmati ashram from premature closure (Tripathi 1991: 93–94).

As he became more known, industrialists from all parts of the
country flocked to him—among the more notable being G. D. Birla,
Jamnalal Bajaj and Lala Shri Ram. Though most businessmen of the
time found it difficult to accept his theory of trusteeship fully and
few became trustees to the extent he recommended, nevertheless, the
theory influenced many of them deeply.
Speaking in 1954, Lala Shri Ram said:

Employers should consider themselves as trustees of the country

and I do feel that they would be taken as trustees by our people
if they will practice self imposed austerity, lead simple lives, and
invest the balance of their profits in expanding industry, and thus
serve the country as trustees. (Joshi 1975: 688).

Jamnalal Bajaj, G. D. Birla and many others contributed liberally

to his schemes for upliftment of Harijans and rural communities and
also began several such ventures themselves. According to Rajat Ray,
the concept of trusteeship provided merchant communities with a
rationale for their material wealth in their own eyes, and an ideo-
logical underpinning to an established behaviour pattern of charity.
Moreover, Gandhi’s saintliness appealed to much deeper spiritual
and religious needs of salvation in their consciousness. In his words,
‘Gandhi in their eyes stood in the long succession of India’s saints,
seers and saviours; and they responded to him as generation upon
generation of their forefathers had responded to such persons’ (Ray
1979/1982: 297).

Business attitudes towards the state

Business attitudes to the state varied in the first and second half
of the period reviewed. From the outbreak of the First World War
to the advent of Independence, a strong sense of nationalism and
the Swadeshi spirit was as noticeable in the business community as
among the intelligentsia and other sections of society. However, the
response of big business was not homogenous but reflected their
varying backgrounds. While the Ahmedabad industrialists and some
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of the Bombay businessmen like Walchand Hirachand and Kirloskar

were keen supporters of the nationalist movement throughout, the
Parsi industrialists, by and large, kept aloof from it, and G. D. Birla
preferred to act as a mediator between the British rulers and the
Congress (Gordon 1978, Mahadevan 1991, Markovits 1961, Piramal
1991 and Tripathi 1991).
In the very nature of things, businessmen tried to avoid head-on
collision with the government since it would affect their business.
Many businessmen played a complex and ambiguous game with the
authorities. P. Thyagaraja Chetty, a leading spokesman of the South
Indian business community, played an important role in the South
Indian Chamber of Commerce, a nationalist business organization,
and equally in the South Indian Liberal Federation, a non-Brahman
group opposed to the Congress and more pro-British (Ray 1979: 292).

The euphoria of Independence continued almost till the 1960s and

there was a willingness on the part of business to cooperate with gov-
ernment for rapid industrialization of India. Therefore, when in 1950
the government announced its intention to resort to planning for de-
velopment and when it created a mixed economy with itself playing
the leading role in industrialization, there was no consternation on the
part of the business community. Nor was it perturbed when in 1954
the Parliament adopted a socialistic pattern of society as the principal
objective of social and economic policy and made it clear to the business
community that it would need to function in conformity with the
state’s social and economic objectives and accept such measures of
control and regulation as were considered necessary for the purpose.
Even before Independence, industry had accepted that there was a
need for planned, coordinated economic development and that this
would require greater state intervention in the economy. Leading
members of the community, among them J. R. D. Tata, G. D. Birla
and Lala Shri Ram, had, in 1944, worked out what was known as the
Bombay Plan which recommended a very active role for government
in economic development and recognized the need for state control to
prevent an inequitable distribution of financial burdens involved in it.
When it was first mooted, G. D. Birla had endorsed the socialistic
pattern of society as being necessary to prevent social upheaval and
to preserve capitalism. He often said:
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I am interested in anything that creates more wealth, more em-

ployment. I am a capitalist but I believe in socialism which means
equal opportunity, more employment and a fairer standard of liv-
ing for everyone. Socialism does not mean socialising poverty, but
raising the quality of life. (Ramanujam 1993: 91–92)

He tried to convey to the business community that the social and

intellectual climate had changed and that they faced a new situation
to which they must adjust. Therefore, there was no anxiety when a
series of enactments such as the Industries (Development and Regu-
lation) Act of 1951 were introduced to regulate industrial invest-
ment, production and management.

Public attitudes to business

As the freedom movement gained momentum, Indian business, by

its cooperation with the nationalist elements and as the harbingers
of prosperity, gained in public esteem. Not only Jamsetji Tata but
many other industrialists became folk heroes for championing the
Indian cause against the British. Quite a few early leaders of the
Indian National Congress like Dadabhai Naoroji, Dinshaw Wacha,
Vithaldas Thackersay and Purshottamdas Thakurdas were highly
respected businessmen. At a later stage, because of their association
with Gandhi, G. D. Birla, Jamnalal Bajaj, Ambalal Sarabhai and
many others came to be well regarded by the public. At the same
time, the image of the business community in general had begun to
be tarnished because of the black marketing and other malpractices
of the unscrupulous among the community.

State attitudes to business

Right up to the time of Independence, the colonial government

tried to keep business on its side, and offered titles to businessmen
doing exceptional philanthropic work, though many nationalist
businessman declined the honour. For instance, Jamnalal Bajaj’s
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work earned him a Rai Bahadur title when he was 28 which, how-
ever, he returned in 1921 in protest against British rule. G. D. Birla
too was offered a knighthood in 1926 which he declined. After
Independence, official awards ceased to recognize philanthropy as
an endeavour worthy of honour, and few businessmen figured in the
honours lists.
When India became free, the Second Five Year Plan (1955–1956/
1960–1961), gave the highest priority to promotion of industry and
the new state, as well as the society at large, looked to the business
class to propel the country forward (Ambirajan 1991: 11–13). Gov-
ernment aided the growth of the corporate sector by providing it the
necessary infrastructure, tariff protection and other incentives.
Though it expected industry to behave in conformity with
national and social objectives, state attitudes towards the business

community were positive. The government sought to allay the fears

of big business that they would suffer in the new socialistic dispen-
sation. Elder statesman C. Rajagopalachari expressed the hope that
businessmen would continue to give their best, in spite of the adop-
tion of the socialistic pattern of society as a national goal. He admit-
ted that high taxation and low net profits were deterrents to private
enterprise, but was confident that,

As long as talent exists, there is a vocational call for big business

to which men cannot say nay, profit or no profit, taxation or no
taxation. Big business in that sense has an undying future —. Big
men will continue doing big things because they cannot help it.2

And to help them do ‘big things’ in the social field, government

continued to give tax concessions. The income tax had been intro-
duced in 1860. In 1922 the government granted 50 per cent tax
exemption to individuals on donations for charitable purposes. After
Independence the government continued and extended the conces-
sions, fully aware of its own limitations in meeting social needs. The
Finance Act of 1948 extended the exemption to companies making
charitable contributions.
During the period under review, public and government ap-
proval gave the business class a high degree of self-confidence and
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self-esteem which was reflected in their willingness to share the bur-

dens of development and in a more generous attitude towards so-
ciety. It was just as well, for there was plenty which needed their
generosity.

The Outcome
The outcome of the complex intermingling of all factors—social,
political, cultural and economic—was philanthropy on a very large
scale. The first 50 years of the twentieth century can legitimately be
called the Golden Years of Indian philanthropy.

2
Quoted in editorial, Capital, 18 August 1955: 213 (Calcutta).

Whereas in the earlier period only two or three large and modern
trusts had been set up, this period witnessed a proliferation of trusts
and foundations. What is significant is that though the wealth came
from the business of the founder, they were not ‘corporate’ founda-
tions as understood today, but were the outcome of the personal
decision and charity of the founder; many were bequests out of per-
sonal fortunes.
The trusts either established prestigious institutions or gave
money to others to create and maintain them. Earlier, money had
been dispensed through trusts to meet immediate social needs,
but the new trusts began to view giving as an instrument of social
change. Moreover, in order to do this effectively, many began to look
to experts to advise them. The trusts preferred to initiate and oper-
ate their own philanthropic projects and the bulk of the funds were
utilized by them for the purpose, only smaller amounts being given
to outside projects.

Philanthropic preferences

It was clear to the pioneers that for sustained development, massive

social investment in education, especially vocational and technical
education, public health, communications, power and water supply
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was necessary. And just as they had initiated a number of new indus-
trial projects irrespective of tariff protection or without expectation
of government aid, so they began to make good the gaps in the social
field themselves. The result was a proliferation of colleges, universi-
ties, technical and research institutes which were later taken over or
supported by government.
Education was a favourite cause and attracted the bulk of funds,
followed by provision of medical facilities. Building their city’s infra-
structure in the form of gardens and parks, city halls, libraries and art
galleries was another favoured form of philanthropy. But the more
basic problems of cities like housing for the poor, sanitation and
drainage continued to be neglected. By 1955 Calcutta presented a
picture of vast disparities in income and wealth. At one end were the
enormously rich European, Bengali and Marwari capitalists living

in fine mansions, and at the other a vast bustee or slum population

living in some of the worst conditions imaginable, thanks to waves
of migration of the impoverished from the agrarian hinterlands
due to famines, unemployment and population explosion between
1921–1941, and later due to the Partition of 1947. By 1951, the
population of the Calcutta municipal area had risen to 2.7 million
of which 66.8 per cent were migrants and 26.9 per cent were refu-
gees from East Pakistan (Goswamy 1990: 88–96). In the 1950s a
socio-economic survey of one of the bustees—Ekbalpur—found that
there were hardly any water taps, and those that were there, had up-
wards of 200 users per tap; no latrines in homes, and municipal la-
trines cleaned only once or twice a month; and finally, non-existent
education facilities (Goswami 1990: 91). The position of Bombay
was similar.
In both cities private philanthropy took care of institutional needs,
but could not bring about more fundamental changes. The business
community believed it was government’s responsibility to meet such
basic needs on such a large scale. Business philanthropy also did not
address rural problems on any significant scale, though several busi-
ness houses contributed to Gandhian organizations engaged in rural
reconstruction activities as well as famine relief. Philanthropy con-
tinued to be urban oriented.
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Regional and community differences

In terms of volume and the nature of contributions, the western

region continued to lead the rest of India, followed by Calcutta. The
other two regions lagged behind both in terms of industrial growth
and scale of philanthropy. Though several charitable institutions
were set up in these regions by the new industrialists, they did not
establish any big trust or foundation comparable to the Tata or Birla
trusts, partly because industrial fortunes were much smaller, and
partly because of a more conservative business style and attitudes.
Chettiar philanthropy, because it was confined mainly to Chettinad
in the early years, helped mostly the Chettiar community. Though
the colleges were open to all, they were utilized mainly by the

Chettiar community and contributed a great deal to building up

professional skills in the community. But it is also contended that
by concentrating on temples and education, the wealthy Chettiars
neglected the industrial development of Chettinad, and did not con-
tribute to its prosperity, unlike the industrial communities who built
up Coimbatore.3
The Naikers, the Nadars and the Rajas who developed indus-
try round Coimbatore, Sivakasi and Rajapalayam, also established
schools, colleges and polytechnics; but more importantly from the
point of view of their communities, they actively helped other mem-
bers of the community to become entrepreneurs, helping them with
money and skills. Consequently, these regions are today better off
than Chettinad which continues to be an economically poor region.
Just as the merchants of the North promoted the development of
Hindi language and literature in the late nineteenth century, so a sec-
tion of the Chettiars led by the Annamalai family joined hands with
the landed elite to use the educational movement to promote Dravid
culture. Chettiar philanthropy supported the Tamil renaissance in
language, literature and the arts, as part of a political war against the
nationalist Congress party which was seen as the party of the North.
The Justice Party, supported by Annamalai, was against hegemony
of the North and preferred British to Congress rule. In Rudner’s
words, ‘the Chettiars transformed the basically European values
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underlying the new philanthropic activities and harnessed them to

a regionally and linguistically based movement of Tamil separatism
and revitalization’ (Rudner 1995: 151).

Philanthropy and status

As in earlier years, secular philanthropy of the twentieth century

was, for several of the business leaders, investment in elite identity
and status creation in their own caste, within the state, and in India
generally. Sometimes these investments also generated social conflict

3
S. Muthiah, editor, Madras Musings, in conversation with author, June
1996.

and social change. Contenders for titles, honours and positions of

power in secular endowments frequently disputed one another’s
credentials. For instance, at the time Annamalai offered `200,000
to the Madras government for a Tamil university at Chidambaram,
K. Thiagaraja Chettiar, who was a supporter of the Congress, but
also had a strong commitment to Tamil culture, offered `350,000
to establish a university in Madurai. He lost because Annamalai was
better positioned politically. The outcome was Annamalai’s control,
as pro-chancellor of the Annamalai university, of resources far in
excess of his endowment.
To conclude this section of the chapter, though charity was per-
haps more purely altruistic than at any other period of history, it
was not unalloyed with a desire for status in the community, for
favour with the rulers or business interest. But happily, enlight-
ened self-interest and public interest coincided for much of the
time.

II
The Golden Donors
The epoch produced many great businessmen who were both great
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leaders of society as well as great philanthropists, with qualities of

head and heart which few have matched since. They acted both at
the national as well as the level of their home cities to enrich both. It
is impossible to name all of them or to adequately catalogue all their
activities. However, the record will not be complete without at least
a brief look at some of the great names of the time.

The Tatas

Jamsetji Tata had committed his business to modern philanthropy

right from the beginning. After his death the tradition was carried
forward by his successors—his two sons, Ratan and Dorab, and after
them by J. R. D. Tata, who, at the very young age of 34, was elected

chairman of the Tata group in 1938, a position he retained till his

death in 1993.4
Sir Ratan and Sir Dorab were exemplary employers like their father
and introduced many welfare schemes for their workers much before
any one else, anticipating the later labour legislation. Jamshedpur, the
flagship of the house of Tatas was developed as a model township.
But their more lasting personal legacy was in the form of two modern
trusts which bear their name. Jamsetji had envisioned a new approach
to dispensation of charity but had been able to fulfil his ideas only
partially. The trusts founded by Sir Ratan and Sir Dorab were the
first in India to use wealth as a catalyst for development and they
continue to remain in the vanguard even today.
Sir Ratan Tata (1871–1918) was Jamsetji’s younger son. His inter-
ests were wide and catholic and his ideas and thoughts ahead of his
times and, therefore, never fully recognized or appreciated. In many
ways, he tried to build a bridge between the West and India by using
his wealth to promote and make known the best in both.
He supported Mahatma Gandhi’s non-cooperation movement in
South Africa and his fight for the rights of Indians, gave Gopal Krishna
Gokhale the necessary financial support to found the Servants of
India Society, endowed a residence at Shantiniketan for European
research scholars coming to India to study Oriental literature and
culture, provided the resources to fund archaeological excavations
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at Pataliputra between 1913–1917 and endowed a chair at the

London School of Economics for research into the causes of poverty
and destitution, provided scholarships for higher studies abroad and
funds for the scientific treatment of T.B. This was apart from giving
large sums of money for distress relief and other charitable causes
such as blind relief.
Sir Ratan had a passion for the arts and had one of the finest art
collections of the time which he bequeathed to the Prince of Wales
Museum. Even in pre-modern times, the wealthy had patronized

4
R. M. Lala has chronicled the Tata philanthropy extensively. In particu-
lar his The Heartbeat of a Trust (see Lala 1984) gives a complete picture of
the two major Tata Trusts and I have relied largely on it for the sections here.

artists and made large collections of art. But the enjoyment of such
collections was confined to their peers and the poor had no access
to them. By bequeathing art to public museums and art galleries,
modern philanthropy was democratizing access to, and enjoyment
of, art.
Before his untimely death at the age of 47, Sir Ratan had willed a
large portion of his fortune for the charitable trust which was set up
in his name in 1919. It was the first major Indian foundation in the
modern sense of the word, and the first of the six major trusts estab-
lished by the Tata family between 1918 and 1947. According to the
terms of Sir Ratan’s will, the trust fund was to be utilized towards ‘the
advancement of Education, Learning and Industry in all its branches
including education in the economy, sanitary science and art or for
the relief of human suffering or for other works of public utility
without any distinction of place, nationality or creed’ (Lala 1984).

Sir Dorab Tata

Sir Dorab Tata followed suit with endowments in the name of

his wife. Lady Dorab Tata was known for her active interest in
social welfare and the women’s movement, so when she died of
leukaemia, Sir Dorab established two trusts in her name—The Lady
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Tata Memorial Fund created in 1932, one-fifth of whose income

was to be spent on an annual award to an Indian scientist working
anywhere in the world for solutions to alleviate human suffering,
and the remainder for research on leukaemia and other blood dis-
eases. The Lady Meherbai D. Tata Trust was specifically devoted to
women’s emancipation and has disbursed money to enable women
graduates to go abroad to study social work.
Just before his death Sir Dorab Tata created the Sir Dorab Tata
Trust for relief of distress from natural disasters, and for education and
research, especially medical, scientific and industrial research. The
wealth he turned over to the Trust included substantial shares in Tata
Sons and allied companies, his landed properties and 21 pieces of his
late wife’s jewellery, among which was the famous Jubilee Diamond.
The total benefaction was valued at `10 million. The two flagship

Trusts—the Sir Ratan and Sir Dorab Tata Trusts—worked together,

complementing and supplementing each other’s work. From the be-
ginning, the Tata trusts were unique in being pioneers in the art
of giving. Though ad hoc giving to comfort the poor and sick has
continued to be a part of their work since they receive a large num-
ber of requests for help, they were, and continue to be, among the
few foundations and trusts in India who understand the distinction
between giving to meet social need and giving as a tool to engineer
social and economic change.
Lady Ratan Tata, a remarkable lady and a philanthropist in her
own right, assumed the leadership and administration of the two
trusts in the 1920s. Far in advance of her time in her approach to
philanthropy, she invited F. S. Markham of the Museum Association,
London, to advise the Ratan Tata Trust on how best to proceed to
meet its objectives. He advised both the Sir Dorab Tata Trust and
the Sir Ratan Tata Trust to concentrate on one or two directions for
a period of 2–5 years in order to secure the greatest possible advance.
Accordingly, the trustees decided that the trust should undertake
such projects that are too major to be undertaken by individuals
and that bear a genuine relevance to national welfare, apart from
extending support to individuals in need. Keeping this advice in
mind, priority was given to education and research institutions.
In 1932, the Dorab Tata Trust requested Dr Clifford Manshardt,
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a noted expert on social work who had established the Nagpada

Neighbourhood House to help mill workers, to study the trust and
make policy recommendations.
Manshardt outlined the philosophy which ought to guide the
trust thus: A trust stands in a different relationship to the commu-
nity than does the individual giver who generally responds sponta-
neously to the demand of the moment. The trust as an institution
should be more objective and take a long-term view. It should not
displace individual giving but can supplement individual giving by
pioneering services, the worth of which are not yet apparent to the
community, or by undertaking projects which may be too expensive
for the individual giver or which must be carried on over a long time.
Since the trust need not be interested in immediate returns, it can
support projects, which though essential, may not at the moment be

popular.5 This was a novel philosophy for an Indian trust in those

days, and its adoption by the Tata trusts set an example for others to
follow. The Tata Trusts also made an effort to reform Parsi Charity.
In 1946, the Wadia Foundation, the Ratan Tata Trust and the Parsi
Panchayat set up a Liaison Committee to pool resources, investigate
cases and coordinate action between different trusts and to under-
take rehabilitation projects instead of offering relief alone (Masani
1961: 127–132 ). It was the first effort among trusts, any where in
India, to coordinate the work of charities. Unfortunately, it remained
the only such.
The last of the Tata Trusts before Independence was set up by
J. R. D. Tata. Born in France in 1904 and educated in Paris and Bombay,
Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (or J. R. D. as he was popularly
known) epitomized in himself the best of the East and the West—
the scientific temper and liberal outlook of the West, combined with
the humanistic tradition of the East, as represented by his forefathers.
He dedicated himself to carrying on Jamsetji’s vision of a politically
free and economically strong India and played a major role in ushering
in the era of air transport and nuclear energy in India. He encouraged
the growth and diversification of Indian industry into a host of new
endeavours from cosmetics, chemicals and electronics to genetics.
In 1944 J. R. D. donated his own share of Tata Sons and other
companies to start the J. R. D. Tata Trust, a multipurpose trust for
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the advancement of learning and relief of human suffering. To it he

transferred more shares from time to time. It has since given out over
`10 million to causes dear to him like family planning and to institu-
tions engaged in literacy and the uplift of women. J. R. D.’s greatest
work lay ahead and is noticed in the next chapter.
From the beginning, the Trusts were fortunate to have at their
head men of great integrity and vision who guided the Trusts to assist
nation building activities and experiments, emphasizing prevention
rather than cure. As Prof. R. D. Choksi, one of its executive trustees,
noted on the proposal that led to the setting up of the Tata Institute
of Fundamental Research said, ‘What distinguishes a trust is not its
ability to give or the extent or range of its giving but the character of its

5
Manshardt (1967: 80).

giving. It is important for a trust to maintain its ‘pioneering’ charac-

ter and this can only be done adequately where from time to time a
trust initiates and fosters new institutions and new types of service
to society. For a great trust, the large project, carefully designed and
executed, must always be a major objective. Even in the routine giv-
ing of grants and donations, the trust must constantly bear in mind
the ‘pioneering’ factor’ (Lala 1984: 25).
Mindful of this philosophy, the Tata Trusts together funded pro-
gressive education, public health and rural reconstruction activities
which were pioneering in some way, apart from initiating major
projects themselves. Between 1941 and 1966 the Trusts established
four great institutions in four very diverse fields–science, medi-
cine, education and arts, namely, the Tata Memorial Hospital for
Cancer Research and Treatment, the Tata Institute of Fundamental
Research, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and the National Cen-
tre for the Performing Arts, each of which has pioneered new ideas,
research or training, and set high standards for others to emulate.
The Trusts themselves contributed substantial sums (`40 million)
to the projects and leveraged funds from government and other
business houses as well.
As the Trusts’ historian, R. M. Lala puts it, ‘it was not just a ques-
tion of establishing a pioneering institution but also of educating a na-
tion in that field of endeavour’ (Lala 1984: xvii). When some trustees
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were sceptical of spending charitable funds for setting up the National

Centre for Performing Arts when India needed health and education
more desperately, J. R. D. backed Jamshed Bhabha who had proposed
it, by saying, ‘While we want to build a prosperous society we do not
want it to be merely a materialistic society’ (Lala 1992: 304).
As will be seen below, this holistic vision, of modern technology
wedded to development of man’s spiritual potential, marked most of
India’s pioneering philanthropists.

The Birlas

Though a later entrant into industry than the Tatas, the house of Birla
was soon a match for them. Just as in industrial entrepreneurship the

House of Tatas was for long equalled only by the House of Birlas, so
also in the field of philanthropy, though the approach of each group
has been different, reflective of their different origins and orientations.
If the Tatas were the face of modern, Western philanthropy, the Birlas
represented an eclectic continuation of the traditional merchant
approach rooted in Hindu religion and philosophy, but refined and
adapted to modern times.
By the end of the Second World War, ‘Birla’ had become a familiar
name in Bombay and Calcutta business circles. In 1937 the parent
firm had split and Ghanashyam Das (or G. D. as he was popularly
called) and his brother Rameshwar operated from Bombay while the
other brothers, Jugal Kishor and Braj Mohan, from Calcutta.
Following their father Baldev Das’s footsteps, each made a name
for himself as a philanthropist. The eldest, Jugal Kishor, decided in
advance the percentage of profit to be donated before he entered
into any speculation. He was more a philanthropist and a man of
religion than a businessman. Though a devout Hindu, his concept
of Hinduism was broad and inclusive and he had equal respect for all
religions. Apart from giving freely to needy individuals, he worked
to preserve Indian culture throughout his life. Besides getting many
religious monuments erected, he sent Hindu and Buddhist scholars
abroad to spread the message of Indian culture, and immensely inter-
ested in music and sculpture, he supported work in these fields. The
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next brother Rameshwardas established many large institutions in

Bombay, including the Maheshwari Relief Society and the Bombay
Hospital. But it was Braj Mohan and Ghanshyam Das who became
legends in the worlds of both business and philanthropy.

Ghanshyam Das Birla

In an age which produced many great philanthropists, Ghanshyam

Das Birla was, perhaps, the greatest in the sheer volume, breadth and
geographical scope of his philanthropy. The third son of Baldevdas,
G. D. was born in 1894 in the small village of Pilani in the dry
and arid Shekhavati region of Rajasthan. He received formal educa-
tion only up to class IV in the village school, but for all that, was

one of the most widely read men, having taught himself Sanskrit,
French and English. He was also a lover of literature and the arts and
an accomplished writer. Brought up to an austere, disciplined and
religious life, he learnt the ideals of charity very early on from his
father, having observed him in action during the great famine which
had gripped Rajasthan when he was a boy, and when his family
had supplied free food to all the needy.6 Married at the age of 12
and inducted into the family business in Bombay at the age of 13,
G. D.’s mission in life was to effect an industrial revolution in the
lives of his fellow countrymen. Himself denied formal education, he
realized early on the value of education to produce quality leaders,
but he wanted an education which was not divorced from life and
helped create technical and vocational skills.
To promote his ideas of education he formed the Birla Education
Trust (BET) in 1929 at Pilani with an initial corpus of `60 million.
Today it is probably one of the largest private education foundations
in the country.
The first task of BET was to bring literacy to the area around
Pilani and the Trust opened several schools, especially for girls,
including the Birla Balika Vidyapeeth. Hospitals and schools were
opened elsewhere as well, not only in big metropolitan cities, but
also in smaller towns like Fatehabad in the Hissar district of Haryana.
In addition, circulating libraries were opened, radios and medicine
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chests provided in a number of villages, Montesseri training of

teachers supported and training in crafts given.
Finally came the grandest project of them all—the establishment
of the Birla Engineering College at Pilani in 1946, conceived and ex-
ecuted on a scale not attempted by private initiative either before or
even after Independence by a single individual. Six crores of rupees
were spent on the Institute by G. D. Birla and family, a stupendous
sum for a private family in those days. Modelled on the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT), G. D. hoped that the Institute
would not produce mere copyists but professionals of competence,

6
For details of G. D. Birlas’ life, I have relied on, amongst others,
G. D. Birla: A Biography (see Jaju 1985). Other references are given in the
bibliography.

originality and imagination and who would be a unique resource

for Indian industry. Later the college became a university with gov-
ernment support and is today a full-fledged centre of scientific and
cultural research. Like the Tatas, and many other liberal industrialists
of the day, G. D. made no discrimination in his charitable giving
between communities or castes and gave as generously to the Aligarh
Muslim University, as he did to the Benaras Hindu University, and
to Hakim Ajmal Khan as to the Deshbandhu Memorial Fund. Spot-
ting individual talent and helping outstandingly creative individu-
als long before they became famous was another of G. D.’s forte.
He gave a contribution of `20,000 to upcoming scientist Sir C.V.
Raman to buy instruments from England long before he became a
Nobel Laureate. It helped him make a scientific breakthrough. There
was a long list of such benefactions in a wide variety of fields. Some
instances are as follows:

• A Birla Chair for economics at the Vishwa Bharati University

in Shantiniketan and contributions to several institutions con-
nected with the development of Hindi;
• financing nationalist historian R. C. Mazumdar for his series
History and Culture of the Indian People.

himself wholeheartedly in it as did Jamnalal Bajaj. He, like many

other business leaders of the day, feared a more open collaboration
with the nationalists would jeopardize their business. But he threw
himself wholeheartedly into Gandhi’s constructive social programme.
Gandhi had but to ask and G. D. would respond not only with
money but men, materials and his own efforts. He helped found and
maintain the Sevagram Ashram; to support Young India, Gandhiji’s
paper; contributed to periodicals and books for Gandhi and to wide
distribution of Gandhi’s own books. He also supported educational
and welfare institutions propagated by Gandhi or recommended by
him, such as Jamia Milia Islamia, Vishwa Bharati, Servants of India
Society, etc., and assisted with money or employment young people
who had taken to constructive work and needed help. The exact
amount donated by G. D. for all of Gandhi’s causes has never been

calculated, but according to his biographers the amount ran into

millions. He not only donated money for important causes himself
but also prevailed upon other businessmen to contribute to funds
such as the Kasturba Gandhi Memorial Fund set up in 1944. Finally,
he gifted away many of the palatial Birla houses to the nation. G. D.
has been criticized on the ground that he gave to Gandhi in self-
interest because the Gandhian programme of freedom and Swadeshi
helped G. D. multiply his millions. Certainly, the Birla businesses
prospered due to the Swadeshi programme, but it is equally true
that G. D. was deeply attached to Gandhi and would have given
regardless. Also, whatever the motive, there is no gainsaying the fact
that many of the social causes espoused by Gandhi for the uplift of
the poor and downtrodden were helped by G. D.’s generosity. In
explanation of why he relied so heavily on G. D. to finance his social
constructive programmes, Gandhiji said:

The fact is that there are plenty of worthy causes in the country,
but not so many donors. The progress of good work is, of course,
not arrested, but new givers are not born every day. Meanwhile
fresh tasks are always mounting.7

Many times Gandhi’s constructive programmes were first piloted

by G. D. and then popularized by Gandhi. G. D.’s motivation was
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primarily religious and his ethical framework was essentially Hindu,

though he was not doctrinaire in any way. It was the concept of
dharma and its ideals of duty and action that appealed to him and his
respect for religion was not confined to his own religion but extend-
ed to all. To many moderns, the philanthropy of G. D. and other
members of the Birla family is flawed for its emphasis on temple
building and promotion of religious values. They see this as a waste
of money which should be better spent on secular developmental
needs. But this is to misunderstand the meaning of religion for G. D.
and other Birlas. His support for religious causes was because he was
a great believer in the moral force of religion and felt that for genuine

7
Gandhi’s letter to G. D. Birla, dated 2nd July 1928, in Bapu—a Unique
Association. See Birla (1977: 102).

prosperity and well-being, moral traditions were preferable to amor-

al modernity. And though he supported religion-related activities,
G. D. did not neglect the modern and secular, or the reformist.
The wisdom of his holistic approach which included the spiri-
tual and the secular is perhaps better appreciated today, when the
world is once again realizing that the non-material dimensions of
development are as important as the material.
In sum, G. D. initiated a philanthropic programme unmatched by
any one business individual in its breadth, its catholicity and holistic
vision, and its geographical outreach. Philanthropic activities were
extended to rural areas and to a socially neglected class. Preserva-
tion and promotion of India’s cultural and spiritual heritage through
research, scholarship and popular dissemination was stressed as
much as promotion of modern science and technology, and ad hoc
charity went hand in hand with institutionalization in trusts. Fur-
ther, in keeping with Indian tenets of charity, all his acts of compas-
sion, resulting in donations for a variety of causes, were made only
after carefully checking the credentials of the receivers. He would not
throw away a single rupee on an unworthy person or cause.
Though his philanthropy was legendary, critics have pointed out
that it was not without its contradictions, and that G. D. Birla’s prag-
matism and morality often came into conflict. Progressive in many
social matters and a fervent believer in higher education for progress,
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he allowed his sons to finish only high school. Though son K. K.

Birla went to college, he did not finish his graduate degree, and it was
only his grandsons who studied for higher degrees abroad. Similarly,
though he fought for women’s rights, especially among the conserva-
tive Marwari community, yet during his time it was rare to see a Birla
woman in the ranks of Birla companies. Finally, it is also pointed out
that though G. D. believed that if Indian capitalists were not allowed
to flourish, a deadening hand of fascism would clutch the throat of
his country in the form of communism, the Birlas’ effective corner-
ing of industrial licences for decades helped keep the lid on true
capitalism (Herdeck and Piramal 1985: 100).
Though there is some truth in the criticism, it is indisputable
that until his death in 1983, G. D. strode like a colossus on the
industrial and philanthropic scene alike. Though towards the end

G. D. became more and more preoccupied with opposing the leftist

policy of Nehru and Indira Gandhi, his philanthropic instincts never
faltered and, till his death, he blessed all projects which furthered
engineering and technology development. Happily, he lived to see
the Birla Institute at Pilani become a deemed university.
On his eightieth birthday he was praised as fulsomely for his phi-
lanthropy as for his business leadership. Writing in Modern India:
Heritage and Achievement (1977), Babubhai Chinai said that G. D.
‘moulded his environment and created things that were considered
not quite possible. Whether it was the setting up of industries, insti-
tutions of learning and research, even houses of God, he tackled the
seemingly impossible and succeeded.’8
In the same volume, S. K. Patil, a Congress minister of the time said:

No single family in India has done as much in the service of the

nation and for the welfare of its people as the Birla family. Their
small and big national charities may go to over 50 crores of ru-
pees during the last five decades. There is no field of human need
where the hand of the Birla family has not reached.9

Similarly, Durgabai Deshmukh, herself a name deeply revered in

social work circles, paid tribute by saying that she had high regard
and appreciation for G. D. Birla and the members of his family for
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what they had done to help the needy and the poor and also for the
development of education, health and social welfare in the country.
The Birla philanthropy today is largely a consolidation and con-
tinuation of the basic tenets laid down by Ghanashyam Das Birla.

The house of Bajaj

According to Gandhi, the businessman who came closest to his ideal

of trusteeship was Jamnalal Bajaj. Innately charitable, his nature was

8
Ganshyam Das Birla Eightieth Birthday Commemoration Volume
Committee (1977: 49).
9
Ibid.

further honed to its utmost by contact with Mahatma Gandhi. Born

in 1889 into a poor peasant family, in a small village of the Shekhawati
region of Rajasthan, Jamnalal was adopted by Seth Bachraj, a trader
in cotton and a moneylender whose father had migrated to Nagpur
in the middle of the eighteenth century.10 Jamnalal was made to leave
school and join the family business, now at Wardha, at the age of
10. He was married when 12. He was in his early twenties when he
inherited the business which he consolidated and expanded. Though
Jamnalal lived mostly in Wardha in central India, he operated also
from Bombay and after him his business empire became Bombay
based. Principled and very conscious of business ethics, Jamnalal
was interested in social reform and social service from an early age,
especially education of women and abolition of child marriage.
Realizing that the key to social reform lay in education, he and his
friend Srikrishnadas Jajoo set up the Shiksha Mandal in 1915 at
Wardha to impart all types of education and to teach technology.
The Mandal began by setting up schools and hostels in Wardha, and
in Sikar in Rajasthan, in which poor boys and girls were supplied free
food, clothes and books. Since then the Mandal has set up colleges
in the Vidarbha region, and more particularly has been associated
with developmental activities in rural areas such as promotion of
sericulture, improved chulhas (stoves) and social forestry.
Though his philanthropic activities were concentrated in Bombay,
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Vidarbha and his home district in Rajasthan, he gave for important

causes elsewhere as well. He donated `31,000 for financing the
institute being set up by the eminent scientist Sir Jagdish Chandra
Bose in Calcutta. Bajaj had never studied science and could not have
understood the intricacies of Bose’s work. But he sensed that the
work was of national importance. Bose had received promises from
many businessmen in Bombay, but only Bajaj kept his word. He also
gave `50,000 (a big sum in those days) to the library of the Benaras
Hindu University at the request of Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya.
When Jamnalal first met Gandhi in 1915, he was a successful
businessman who lived well and travelled widely. After meeting
Gandhi, Jamnalal’s life changed completely. He adopted a simple

10
I have drawn extensively on Nanda (1990) for the following.

and austere lifestyle and identified himself completely with Gandhi,

his freedom struggle and his constructive programmes, at a time
when it was very risky for businessmen to openly associate them-
selves with Gandhian politics. He put himself and his wealth at the
disposal of Gandhi not only for the freedom movement but also for
his constructive programme of removal of untouchability, popular-
ization of khadi and village industries, promotion of basic education
and Hindu–Muslim unity.
By the time Jamnalal died in 1942, the capital of the family busi-
ness had become considerably depleted due to Jamnalal’s generosity.
Just before he died, he wanted to give away his own share in the joint
family business to public causes approved by Gandhi, but death an-
ticipated him.
Jamnalal’s wishes were respected by his sons who set up the
Jamnalal Bajaj Seva Trust in 1942 with an initial corpus of `500,000
which was his entire share in the family wealth. The Trust’s objectives
were to relieve distress; promote spiritual, intellectual and social
welfare; impart education and training for the welfare, particularly
of rural, illiterate, backward people, women and children; and to
render assistance to widows, orphans, disabled and illiterate persons.
Jamnalal’s wife Janakidevi had shared a close relationship with
Jamnalal and had actively associated herself with all his activities.
She too surrendered her wealth after his death for the Goseva or
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cattle improvement programme, in which he had been interested,

and other causes.
Bajaj’s philanthropy was unique because of its emphasis on values
and because it was one of the first instances of business interest in the
development of rural areas and its lowest strata—the untouchables.
After Jamnalal, his son Kamalnayan and grandson Ramakrishna
revived and expanded the business. By the 1960s the House of Bajaj
controlled more than 20 companies and had become one of the
major industrial groups. Both the sons were as interested in propa-
gating Gandhian ideals and fair trade practices as Jamnalal had been.
After Gandhi’s death both had become followers of Vinoba Bhave
and his Sarvodaya philosophy, and they continued the philanthropic
tradition of the family through the Jamnalal Bajaj Seva Trust and
donated `11 lakhs to the University of Bombay to set up the first

management Institute in Bombay—the Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of

Management Studies.

House of Lalbhais: Kasturbhai Lalbhai

The Lalbhai family had an unbroken tradition of civic leadership

and philanthropy from the days of the great merchant Shantilal
Jhaveri, and its most illustrious member in contemporary times was
Kasturbhai Lalbhai. Kasturbhai, born in 1894, had to discontinue
his education at the age of 17 to join the family business. By 1938
he had become the biggest textile magnate in the city, and one of the
biggest in the country. He went on to expand his empire into starch,
dyestuffs and other areas.
Kasturbhai lived at a time when no intelligent and sensitive being
could ignore the pressing demands of the society in which he lived.
Moreover, both from his father’s and mother’s side, he had inher-
ited a tradition of charity. His great grandmother Harikunwar had
donated lakhs of rupees for public purposes in her times and was
known as Rani due to her munificence. Kasturbhai’s own mother
gave a large amount of money to Jain shrines. It was thus natural
that he should become involved in famine relief work when, in 1918,
there was famine and an influenza epidemic in different districts of
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Gujarat. His contribution was not only financial but organizational.

He collected funds from mill owners and other wealthy individuals
and arranged for supplies. Thereafter, he was at the vanguard of relief
operations on almost all occasions. In 1972, he headed the Sankat
Nivaran Society jointly set up by the Gujarat Chamber of Com-
merce and Industry and Ahmedabad Millowners Association. Under
his leadership it became the principal forum in Gujarat for relief
operations in times of social distress.
Unlike the Bombay merchants who were ambivalent about
the nationalist struggle and Gandhi’s leadership, the Ahmedabad
merchants were solidly nationalist and pro-Congress. Under Gandhi’s
influence, Kasturbhai was drawn into supporting constructive
programmes and taking an active part in public life. He represented
mill owners at national forums like the Central Legislative Council

in 1919, and the FICCI, of which he was elected the president

in 1934.
Kasturbhai institutionalized the family’s philanthropy by estab-
lishing trusts so that the work could continue beyond him and ir-
respective of him. Taking advantage of the new tax exemptions for
charity, Kasturbhai set up the Lalbhai Trust in memory of his father
to which he, and other members of the family, donated `1 million in
the next 5 years. It became the major outlet for the family’s support
for deserving social demands. Several other trusts were established
subsequently.
The social concern of Kasturbhai emanated from a deeply reli-
gious self, a temperament inherited from his pious mother. Religious
concerns were therefore pursued along with the secular.
As Chairman of the Anandji Kalyanji Trust, the premier trust
of the Svetamber Jains founded in 1720, he brought order into its
management. Under his leadership it launched a temple renovation
scheme in 1932. The beautiful Jain temples in Palitana, Gujarat and
Mount Abu and Ranakpur in Rajasthan had suffered severely from
neglect and were in a deplorable state. Under Kasturbhai’s leadership
they were renovated with care for authenticity and historical detail,
an act for which he has earned the gratitude of lovers of India’s
art heritage as well as devout Jains. Education remained high on
Kasturbhai’s list of philanthropic activities. Denied the benefit of
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higher education himself, he did a great deal to expand opportunities

for others. Most of these institutions were founded with the
support of the Ahmedabad Education Society to which Kasturbhai
contributed substantial sums and in establishing which in 1936
he had played an active role. Under his leadership the Society was
responsible for proliferation of colleges of arts, science, commerce,
pharmacy, engineering and architecture.
Kasturbhai’s involvement with social issues increased over the
years, and he started a number of educational and cultural insti-
tutions such as the Physical Research Laboratory, the Ahmedabad
Textile Industry’s Research Association, the Indian Institute of Man-
agement and the Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Institute of Indology, named
after his father—all of which would not have seen the light of day
but for his leadership. Interested in the scientific, he was equally a

patron of the arts, who was proud of his city and understood the
importance of art and good architecture in shaping its environment.
Speaking at the opening of the L. D. Institute of Indology in 1963,
he said:

The development of education in recent times is being focused

more and more on technology and industrial sciences … these
studies are necessary for economic progress.… But sometimes
lead to a neglect of the studies of arts and humanities. This
lacuna is not beneficial for the full development of the mind.
Indological studies can contribute substantially to the advance-
ment of the human mind. They provoke an awakening to a sense
of perception of beauty and truth by revealing experience of the
past.11

Even as he worked to preserve the artistic heritage of Ahmedabad

and India, he had a modern outlook and took risks in commission-
ing a great number of experimental art and architectural projects,
for each of which he selected the appropriate artist and architect.
One such architect, Charles Correa, testifies that it is because
Kasturbhai and his colleagues took chances that Ahmedabad became
a focal point for a great deal of creative activity in architecture and a
magnet for visiting designers and architects from all over the world.12
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In the words of Nani Palkhiwala,

He summed up in himself three main elements of ancient Indian

culture: compassion of the strong towards the weak, suppression
of immediate personal desires for more rewarding though more
distant goals of national progress and national glory, and encour-
agement to young men and women to cultivate the intellect, not
merely with a view to selling it as a commodity in the market

11
Kasturbhai’s speech at the opening ceremony of the Lalbhai Dalpatbhai
Institute of Indology, 11 May 1963, reprinted in Gujarat Chamber of Com-
merce and Industry (1983: 110–111).
12
Charles Correa, in Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry
(1983: 56).

but for the inner satisfaction which comes to a mind in quest of

higher values.13

He was also among the small band of business leaders who

brought social responsibility within the ken of the Indian business
community at a time when money making was all important. He said:

Our pressing need in these rapidly changing times, is moral lead-

ership. The businessman is ideally fitted to make an important
contribution to this end. He should, therefore, actively participate
in every worthwhile movement directed towards preserving for
our country a sound social and economic structure.14

Lala Shri Ram

Born in 1884 into an Agarwal bania family of modest means, Lala

Shri Ram joined his uncle Gopal Rai’s mill—the DCM—at the age
of 21 after a stint in a cloth shop. He soon worked his way to the
top and went on to build up an industrial complex spanning textiles,
sugar, heavy chemicals and pottery. Hard-working, shrewd and
humane in his relationships, he was a good employer and maintained
excellent relationships with his employees. He built houses for workers,
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instituted profit sharing, provident and other welfare funds and

arranged for technical training much before demands were made or
legislation required it. He had an acute sense of social responsibility
and maintained that the head of any organization should reconcile
the growth prospects of the enterprise, the welfare of workers and the
interests of consumers. He believed success lay in securing all three ends
even though they may seem to compete and conflict with each other.
Though he cooperated with the British rulers and sought business
and honours from them, he was also a nationalist who believed in

13
Quoted in Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (1983: 33).
14
Kasturbhai was speaking at the Indian Merchant’s Chamber, Bombay,
27 February 1963. Reprinted in Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (1983: 108–109).

economic freedom, industrial self-reliance and freedom from want,

and much of his philanthropy centring on technical education was
born of this vision.
In his thirties he began to take a lot of interest in civic affairs,
greatly disturbed by the wretched condition of his home city—old
Delhi—with its stinking garbage, narrow lanes and lack of water
supply on tap, schools and public dispensaries. He got himself nomi-
nated to the Municipal Committee, studied municipal problems
thoroughly and marshalled extensive data on the needs of the city in
order to effect improvements. He remained a member of the Com-
mittee for 15 years and through a booklet titled ‘Municipal Prob-
lems of Delhi’, tried to interest and get the support of the Punjab
government, the Central government and his fellow citizens alike for
improved municipal services.
Outside the municipality, he initiated several philanthropic proj-
ects to improve the lives of his fellow men. He was little educated,
and perhaps because of that he was convinced that education was
the key which was going to unlock the door to India’s greatness as an
industrial nation, but that the system needed to be reformed to make
it more relevant to contemporary needs. His greatest contribution
lay in expanding on an unprecedented scale the educational infra-
structure of Delhi, particularly vocational and technical education,
research and women’s education.
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Unhappy at the too literary nature of the education then being

imparted, and also at the exclusion of the industrialist in formulating
curricula of schools and colleges, he tried to remedy the unsatisfac-
tory situation. Along with some friends he set up the Commercial
Education Trust in 1920 with a corpus of `200,000. The Trust in
turn set up the Commercial High School, which in 1934 became
a postgraduate college, and was renamed the Shri Ram College of
Commerce in 1951.
After Independence, Lalaji became even more acutely conscious
of the need to build up India’s technological strength and to make
education relevant to the needs of development. He therefore took
great interest in and promoted commerce education and industri-
al research. By 1962 the Commercial Education Trust (CET) had
started and supported seven educational institutions, among them

the Shri Ram College of Commerce and the Lady Shri Ram College
for Girls in memory of his wife. The Shri Ram Institute of Industrial
Research, first conceived in 1930 became a reality in 1947, financed
by the Shri Ram Charitable Trust set up in 1932 to which Lalaji
had contributed `1.2 million initially and continued to contribute
`100,000 annually thereafter. Apart from setting up his own insti-
tutions, Lalaji also took a great deal of interest in the promotion
of technical education by the government. He chaired various com-
mittees and mobilized funds from other industrialists whom he per-
suaded to take more interest in nation-building activities. It was his
leadership which made possible the setting up of the Indian Institute
of Technology in Kharagpur in 1959.
His interests in education were wide ranging and included schools
for town and country planning, agricultural schools and schools for
printing technology and refrigeration. Little wonder then that he
was known as ‘College King’!

Sir Raja Annamalai Chettiar

The main promoter of the Indian Bank, Raja Annamalai Chettiar,

gave a new direction to the charitable activities of the business
community in the South. In addition to their religious charities,
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leading businessmen also adopted British notions of public service

and philanthropy, involving themselves from 1920 onwards with
educational projects and works of municipal improvement.
Sir Annamalai himself had little formal education, but believed
that the future of India lay in spreading education rapidly. He thus
founded numerous schools and capped it by founding the Meenakshi
College at Chidambaram in 1920. He followed it up with many
other colleges—the Sanskrit College, the Music College, the Tamil
College and so on. They became the nucleus of the Annamalai
University, the first university founded entirely through private
means. In 1928 he made an endowment of `200,000 towards
setting up a unitary and residential university in Chidambaram.
The government matched the contribution, and later raised it and
named the university after the donor. In recognition of his political

role and his financial contributions to the founding of a University

at Chidambaram Annamalai was first made Rao Bahadur and then
given the title of Raja Sir, a hereditary title for his family though they
were in no way of royal lineage.
Sir Annamalai’s contribution to women’s education and health
by founding the Lady Pentland Women and Children’s Hospital
in Chettinad, the Lady Ampthill Nurses Association, Madras Seva
Sadanam and other such institutions is also well known. There were
other great philanthropists during the period such as Kamalpat
and Lakshmipat Singhania, Gujarmal Modi, in the North; P. D.
Agarwal, Goenkas, Kanorias, in Calcutta; Kuppuswamy Naidu
in Coimbatore—all of whom contributed to the institutional
efflorescence witnessed at the time. But lack of space forbids a fuller
mention.

Was It CSR?
Corporate philanthropy was certainly alive and well during the
period, but one can question whether social responsibility was equally
evident. Leaving aside the giants such as those mentioned above who
combined instances of both philanthropy and social responsibility,
instances of unethical behaviour within the community were fairly
Copyright © 2013. SAGE Publications India Pvt, Ltd.. All rights reserved.

widespread. Excess profiteering; unhealthy practices like wetting

bales to increase weight; interlocking of shares and using trust monies
for business funding were common. Though there was concern
for the environment in pre-industrial and early capitalist times as
can be seen in the focus on tree planting, welfare of animals and
other such measures such concern evaporated with industrialization.
At the same time CSR was not wholly absent. Many business
leaders gave leadership to the community just as they supported
social reform and the freedom struggle. Several of the business
leaders also campaigned for values and ethics in business. In the
pre-Independence years, business efforts also went into women’s
emancipation. However, most of the attention was directed to urban
and middle-class India; the rural areas and disadvantaged sections
were left out of the net.

Moreover, apart from a few noted names, Gandhi was sometimes

disconcerted by the niggardliness of richer donors. He valued the
coppers of the poor as much as the magnificent gifts of the rich,
and the fact was that small merchants and shopkeepers gave more to
Congress campaigns like Tilak Swaraj Fund which was spent on the
non-cooperation movement, national schools, khadi promotion, etc.
Even the money for the Benaras Hindu University came from small
donations raised from a very wide base of donors. But overall, the
fervour of the freedom struggle and the desire to build a new India
gave a meaning and purpose to many a business man’s existence.
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