In a significant gesture, Azim Premji, chairman of Wipro Ltd., has decided to earmark the economic benefits of an additional 34% of shares in Wipro, held by entities controlled by him, for charity.
The current market value of the shares is estimated to be about ₹52,750 crore.
An announcement to this effect was made by Azim Premji Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Mr. Premji, through a regulatory filing with the stock exchanges.
Past donations
“This action is in addition to his earlier donations to philanthropy which included Wipro’s shares, as well as other assets owned by him. With this action, the total value of the philanthropic endowment corpus contributed by the Wipro chairman is ₹1,45,000 crore, which includes 67% of economic ownership of Wipro Limited,” the Foundation said in its filing.
Sustainable society
“Azim Premji’s philanthropic activities have a vision to contribute to developing a just, equitable, humane and sustainable society in India. To enable this vision, the Foundation works directly in education and supports other not-for-profit activities, working in some specific areas through multi-year financial grants,” it said.
In the last five years, the grants had supported over 150 organisations engaged in a range of domains across India, it added.
