WHO GUARDS THE GUARDIANS OF
SOCIETY?
By
Dr T Padma., LLM., Ph D (Law)
kethepadma@gmail.com
Background
The NGO sector plays a crucial role in the growth of a
nation. The Indian voluntary sector (or the NGO sector) is emerging to be a
credible force in catalyzing the nation’s social and economic growth,
particularly for the masses at the ‘bottom
of the economic pyramid’. The potential for this is well apparent from the
experience of other developed and developing economies. If India is to achieve,
as is predicted, the living standards of the developed world by 2050, then the
NGO sector would need to play a critical role, and must grow at a pace much higher than that required
of the overall Indian economy.
Governance standards of organisations are recognized as
critical in maintaining the transparency and accountability on the whole. This
is as true for the NGOs as for the corporate and the government. That the
governance standards play a significant role in creating operational
efficiencies and risk mitigation, particularly those of the long-term nature,
is increasingly evident from recent global trends and research. The corporate
world in general, and also the government sector, has in recent years
increasingly recognized this correlation, as is reflected in the emphasis on
the ‘corporate governance best practices’
and ‘the regulatory frameworks’ that
have emerged. But while the corporate sector in India and elsewhere has
somewhat succeeded in institutionalizing effective governance policies and
regulations, the NGO sector is yet to reach anywhere near that level. This is
dragging down the NGO sector from performing the role that it must for the
overall growth of the nation and its economy
.
Unsurprisingly,
within India there are about 3.2 million registered NGOs, of which an estimated
1.5 million are active. Some of India's religious trusts are among the richest
in the world. During 2010-11, Tirumala temple, managed by Tirumala Tirupati
Devasthanams (TTD), collected the "Hundi"
collections touching `650
crores. The proposed TTD budget estimates for the fiscal year 2011-12 will be
about ` 1,641.76
crores and the interest on investments
of cash and gold deposits made at several Nationalised Banks is estimated to
earn about ` 431.73 crore[1].
A
team entrusted with the task of making a list of the contents stored in
the secret underground cellars of Lord Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple at Thiruvananthapuram by
the Supreme Court have found to their surprise,
that the cellars contain gold ornaments, jewels, emeralds, gold and
silver utensils, and other valuables estimated to be worth over `50,000 crores. With this, Sree Padmanabha Swami
Temple has emerged as the richest shrine in the country. [2]
Ever
since news of Sathya Sai Baba being critical in hospital emerged, many have
wondered who would manage the Sathya Sai Central Trust in the time to come.
Even before the mortal remains of Baba can be laid to rest, a quest is on for
control over the Trust. While the assets with Trust are officially assumed to
be ` 40,000
crore, an unofficial estimation runs to over ` 1.4
lakh crore. Sathya Sai Central Trust is the Administrative Body running health
and educational institutions, and the Baba was supreme as authorised signatory
of bank accounts. With no heir apparent, many are vying to become the Trust's
president.[3]
Existing
Legal Framework
The
right of all citizens to form associations or unions is guaranteed under
Article 19(1) (c) of the Constitution of India. Charitable organizations
usually take the legal status in the form of a Trust, Society, or non-profit
company (also called not-for-profit organisations or NGOs), and are regulated
by a variety of State and Central Government Agencies, Laws and Authorities.
The
Federal and State laws (Many states also have their own Public Trusts Acts)
which are applicable to charitable organizations and NGOs operating in India
include:
a)
Indian
Trusts Act of 1882
This Act applies
only to private trusts throughout India except the state of Jammu and Kashmir
and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
b)
Bombay
Public Trusts Act 1950
This legislation
deals with charitable trusts in the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat.
c)
Charitable
and Religious Trusts Act 1920
This law extends to the whole of India except
the State of Jammu and Kashmir. The Central Government can extend its coverage
to Jammu and Kashmir by notification in the Official Gazette,
d)
Societies
Registration Act 1860
This is a
federal Act and is applicable generally to all states. However some regions had
already enacted their own laws, others have made amendments or modifications to
the Act, and other states have passed completely new laws to regulate societies
leading to considerable variation across states.
e)
Companies
Act 1956
Section 25 of
the Companies Act 1956 deals with non-profit
companies. This Act is a federal Act and applies to non-profit companies
operating in any state.
f)
The
Wakf Act 1995
This
Act is applicable to all Wakfs whether created before or after the commencement
of the Wakf Act, 1995.
g) The Income Tax Act 1961
This is a
federal Act which applies in all states, and governs tax exemption of not-for-profit
organizations operating in India.
h)
The
Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 [FCRA]
The Foreign
Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 [FCRA] has been enacted by the Parliament
to replace Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 1976 [FCRA 1976]. The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act,
2010 (FCRA 2010) came into force on 26-09-2010. The basic purpose of FCRA 2010
as mentioned in the preamble to the Act is “to consolidate the law to regulate the acceptance and utilisation of
foreign contribution or foreign hospitality by certain individuals or
associations or companies and to prohibit acceptance and utilisation of foreign
contribution or foreign hospitality for any activities detrimental to the
national interest and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.”
Present
Reporting Requirements
a) The Societies Registration Act 1860
provides that each society has to submit an annual report and list details of
its managing body every year to its local Registrar of Societies. The requirement
to file accounts differs between states.
b) All
trusts registered under the Bombay Public
Trusts Act have to file annual reports. In addition, trusts with an income
above `15,000
per annum have to submit audited accounts, and those with an annual income below
`15,000
have to submit income and expenditure statements within 6 months of closing of
accounts to the Charity Commissioner’s office.
c) All
section 25 companies have to file:
Ø audited
accounts;
Ø an
annual report;
Ø an
annual return with the Registrar of Companies; and
Ø
important resolutions.
Additional requirements for all
directors and significant shareholders are laid out in the
Companies Act 1956.
d) The Foreign Contribution
(Regulation) Act, 2010
Considering
the flow of funds into the country for purposes other than business, the
Government has specified that acceptance of FC against national interest would
not be permissible, requiring persons accepting FC to be subject to enhanced
scrutiny. The measures include prior CG approval for accepting FC, registration
and renewal, conditions for end use of FC and for transfer of FC to other
persons etc.
The earlier Act of 1976 (FCRA 1976)
had outlived its utility and needed to be scrapped as it had failed to keep
pace with the changing face of India’s economic growth, more particularly after
the introduction of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. Both these
Acts cover the Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs), the organisations having a
definite cultural, economic, educational, religious or social programme, and
also the persons in sensitive government positions, political parties and
persons associated with the news media.
The provisions of FCRA 2010 applicable for
regulating the acceptance of foreign contribution by persons having a
definite cultural, economic, educational, religious or social programmes are as follows:
NPOs are directly affected by the
provisions of FCRA (both FCRA 1976 and 2010), and the Government closely
monitors the inflow of foreign contribution into this sector.
Both under FCRA 1976 and FCRA 2010, any
individual or organisation carrying out a definite cultural, economic,
educational, religious or social programme is required to be registered with
the Central Government or obtain prior permission of the Central Government before
accepting any foreign contribution. Such an NPO cannot in turn transfer the
foreign contribution received by it to any other person unless such other
person is also registered or has obtained prior permission.
The process of registration is stringent
and fraught with bureaucratic process. Unless the NPO has a track record of at
least three years, as a matter of practice, registration has generally not been
granted under FCRA 1976. Under FCRA 2010, the requirement of having a track
record is now codified, as the Act specifically provides that before granting
registration, the Central Government shall verify whether the NPO has
undertaken reasonable activity in its chosen field for the benefit of society.
If the NPO is not able to fulfill the requisite conditions for registration,
then the only alternative would be to apply for prior permission, which would
be valid only for the specific purpose and source for which it is obtained.
Even for prior permission the NPO would have to show that it has a reasonable
project for the benefit of society for which the foreign contribution is
proposed to be utilised.
The Central Government, before granting
registration or prior permission, is required to ensure that the person or
organisation is in no way working to the detriment of national interest. For
example, (and the below-mentioned items are only illustrative) it should not be
engaged in:
a) Religious
conversion through inducement or force;
b) Creating
communal tension or disharmony;
c) Propagation
of sedition or advocating violent methods to achieve its ends;
d) Undesirable
purposes.
Besides, permission can be denied if the
acceptance of foreign contribution is likely to affect prejudicially the
sovereignty and integrity of India or is against the security, strategic,
scientific or economic interest of the State; or is opposed to public interest.
This clearly brings out that the Central
Government has almost absolute powers to deny registration or prior permission.
The manner in which some of the above criteria can be interpreted is extremely
subjective and fear is that too much power is placed in the hands of the
bureaucracy and this may lead to undesirable consequences.
Under FCRA 1976, prior permission was
relatively simpler to obtain as compared to registration and was generally
granted within 90 days if the paper-work was proper. Under FCRA 2010, it is
specified that application for registration or prior permission should, after
inquiry, be ordinarily granted within 90 days of the application or the
Government should communicate the reasons for not granting the same. No
specific consequences are provided for not processing the application within
the 90 days and hence the provisions are rightly viewed with a great deal of
skepticism, as it is unlikely that the sanctity of the time frame of 90 days
will be observed.
Under the Amended Act a ‘certificate of registration’ is now valid for a period
of five years, after which the registration process will have to be repeated.
This is in deviation of the present situation under FCRA 1976 where
registration once granted is valid for the lifetime unless specifically
revoked. The Central Government has wide powers under specified situations to
cancel the certificate of registration, after making such inquiry as it deems fit.
For example, the certificate can be cancelled if the NPO has obtained the same
by making false statements or has violated any terms and conditions of
registration or of FCRA or its rules or it is necessary to do so in public
interest. The certificate can also be cancelled if the NPO has not been engaged
in any reasonable activity for the benefit of society for two consecutive
years. Foreign contribution can be received only in a single designated bank
account and it is not permissible to open multiple bank accounts. Often funding
agencies demand that separate bank account be opened specifically to manage and
monitor the foreign contribution sent to India by them. Unfortunately that is
not permitted under FCRA and needs to be clearly explained to the funding
agencies.
Often trusts have projects in far-flung
and remote places and it is always advisable to open a bank account at the
project site. Recognising this need, it is provided that more than one bank
account can be opened for actual utilisation of such foreign contribution. Such
bank account is popularly referred to as project account and typically, the
funds are transferred from the designated account, to the project account for
direct spending on the project. No other deposits are allowed to be made in
such project account as they are meant only for disbursement of expenses. Such
project accounts were permitted under FCRA 1976 also by way of administrative
directions, but under FCRA 2010, the same is legitimised by a specific
provision in the Act itself.
The NGOs will have to maintain records
and accounts in the prescribed manner and intimation will have to be sent to
the Central Government reflecting the amount of each contribution received, its
source and manner in which the same was utilised. The designated bank also has
to report the details of the foreign contributions routed through them directly
to the specified authority.
NGO Sector - Drawbacks in the Present Set-up
By its nature the voluntary sector has an extremely
philanthropic side to it, thus making it difficult for corporate-like
professionalism or profit driven accountability-standards to take precedence
over its core functions. However, like the other key sectors of India, the
voluntary sector is also faced with imposing evolutionary and ‘market’
challenges. Hence, issues of internal control mechanisms, professionalism,
accountability, transparency and financial management must be given impetus.
The challenge is manifold, and compounded by the ‘unorganised’ nature of the
sector, lack of regulatory frameworks and the fact that India boasts of more
than a million NGOs comprising different roles, structures and sizes.
Evidently, there is both a need for a pertinent shift in the
manner of how the voluntary sector in India views governance and the associated
regulatory frameworks. Equally important is to create competencies for better
risk management through operational means and management procedures for risk
monitoring and risk mitigation. In case of the NGOs, more so than for the
Corporates, the risks often take the shape of vulnerability to influences and
risk dynamics ranging across:
1)
Lack of or limited access to
professional management expertise
2)
Financial inefficiencies and
malpractices
3)
Vested organised crime and political
interests
4)
Extremism and terrorism
The changing social dynamics and security environment have
added to the exposure of the voluntary sector to various risks, especially
those operating in extremely remote or underdeveloped regions (where
incidentally the need and the contribution of the NGOs is most critical). In
particular, the NGO sector has become vulnerable to the vested interests of
partial political interests, organised crime and extremist organizations in
such regions.
The Indian government has been blacklisting several NGOs
(sometimes, the numbers running into hundreds) for primarily fund
misappropriation and relationships with extremist groups. As many as 833 NGOs
and voluntary organisations have been blacklisted by an autonomous body[4] under rural development ministry
after they were found indulging in misappropriation of funds. Of the 833 NGOs
and voluntary organisations which were blacklisted, 192 were from Andhra
Pradesh, 125 from Bihar, 83 from Tamil Nadu, 75 from Karnataka, 72 from Uttar
Pradesh, 42 from Rajasthan and 35 from Kerala[5].
In the incidents of the past several years, the sector has
been often unlawfully exploited in that several NGOs (both national and
global), especially those that receive foreign contributions, have been used as
conduits for money laundering and sponsoring terrorist/extremist activities. This
trend is not unique to India. The world over extremist and terrorist
organisations are known to operate through ‘front’ NGOs as also extensively use
NGOs as vehicles for generating funds and gaining influence and respectability
amongst the local communities.
Such security considerations have further brought to fore
the rising criticality of improving the governance practices in the Indian NGOs
and exercising better regulatory mechanisms, disclosure norms, and management
processes including financial management and budgeting systems as well.
Moreover, in the larger interest going beyond the security considerations, the
impetus has to be on inculcating a culture of including performance goals,
conducting financial and performance audits, and reforms for increasing the
operational accountability and transparency in the eyes of the public,
volunteers, donors and other stakeholders.
As of now,
there are no specific laws or regulations to regulate volunteerism in India. A
task force, constituted to examine the issues related to the evolution of an
independent, national level, self-regulatory agency for the voluntary organisations
and develop accreditation methodologies by the Planning Commission, has
suggested the creation of a statutory body, the National Accreditation Council
of India (NACI), on the lines of the Bar Council and the Press Council of
India. The NACI would develop, upgrade
and promote norms and practices for the accreditation of voluntary
organisations of various sizes and competencies, and assiduously remain on
guard against all efforts and developments that might compromise the autonomy
of a voluntary organisations.[6]
Need
for Good Governance Practices
Therefore, the policy makers should
give top priority to regulate this NGO sector by introducing the needed
Regulatory Framework to bring in the transparency &
accountability in this voluntary sector. Some of the areas where the immediate governance based
interventions needed are furnished below:
a)
Financial Prudence
Like every other sector, one of the major drivers of
efficiency is the manner of utilization of the capital and the funds that the
NGO sector accumulates through various sources for carrying out its work. If
statistics are to be taken into consideration, out of more than 1.5 million
NGOs operating in India, only 3% are being able to carry out constructive
grass-root level work (ICONGO, 2002 survey). Furthermore, NGO establishments
typically tend to have high administrative costs of nearly 60% and above.
Indicatively (based on limited statistics that are available for India), only
10-20% of the funds are utilized for effective developmental work. More
stringent management norms and regulatory oversight will contribute to more
effective spending by NGOs.
For instance, NGOs operating in under-developed nations
receive more than $15 billion as funding from international financial
institutions and government agencies – this is approximately the same amount of
money that World Bank spends on development in these countries. The important
question is whether the voluntary sector is being successful in delivering a
comparable amount of development in the regions?
b)
Internal Controls Mechanisms
A study conducted by the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) during
2007 elucidates “that if India continues its recent growth, average household
incomes will triple over the next two decades and it will become the world’s 5th-largest
consumer economy by 2025, up from 12th (during 2007).” This also means more
funds for the Indian NGO sector if it is able to create a greater degree of
trust and professionalism in its operations. The NGO sector is beset by the
problem of ‘lack of transparency’ in their functioning for gaining the trust of
people and the donors for fund raising activities.
Transparency in operations is a major challenge. A large
numbers of NGOs are prone to exploitation by vested political interests,
extremist outfits and criminals for a variety of reasons owing to their clean,
philanthropic image and their direct-connect with the masses (which both the
corporates and the government tend to lack). This characteristic strength of an
NGO often becomes its weakness since such vested interests misuse the public
trust and the image enjoyed by the NGOs. This is further aggravated by the fact
that NGOs have substantial access to international and national funds, again
generally devoid of intensive scrutiny or audit trails.
c)
Management Efficiencies
The NGO sector in India is largely in the form of what can
be termed as an ‘unorganised sector’, with a preponderance of small outfits
that have been floated by either individuals or small groups of people. The
NGOs are generally founded by people passionate about a ‘cause’, which often
results in an organisational infrastructure that is focused on operations
rather than efficiencies and management processes. One result of this is the
wastage of resources. Limited statistics that are available indicate that on an
average 70 percent of the funds are utilized for the administrative purposes of
the NGOs.
The philanthropic and the humanitarian angle of the NGOs
often override the need for management efficiencies and systematic planning to
achieve the ‘cause’ based objectives. The fact that is amiss from the vision of
the voluntary sector in India is that better management processes and
professionalism can only accelerate the success of developmental and welfare
programs in a seamless manner. There also exist numerous NGOs spending
disproportionate amount in advertising and salaries often robs the sector of
the trust and the faith among the general public.
In addition, the disproportionate focus on the operations
versus management efficiencies and planning results in people with inadequate
management competencies to hold senior positions. This exposes the sector to
higher degree of risk from corruption and frauds, both intentional and
consequential.
d)
Prone to Money Laundering Transactions
The operational risk that emanates from unmonitored funding
to NGOs is that it exposes the sector to money laundering and terrorism
financing risks. This is further complicated by the fact that many NGOs have an
international presence in strife-affected regions, and their operations are
directed to vulnerable communities, which also tend to be the communities which
extremist organisations target for support, propaganda, fund-raising and
recruitment activities. This makes the NGOs to be more prone to money laundering
activities.
e)
Internal Control Checks in the Operations of NGOs
There are numerous NGOs working in remote and challenging
regions of India. Many of the well-funded organisations have large
geographically spread-out set-ups with regional branches in such areas.
Consequently, such set-ups in the remote regions have inadequate means for
internal control, further exposing to the risk of inadequate functional and
financial monitoring.
Internal control mechanisms form an integral part of any
organisation since it is essential that the ‘child’ outfits work in tandem with
the parent organisations. It will be less beneficial if the parent organisation
(often, set up in a large city) adheres to regulations and internal
policies/controls but the branches do not.
Another impediment is that the regional branches often have
limited autonomy and funds to manage the developmental activities at the
grass-root level. This creates a huge disparity in the vision and the mission
of the parent and the regional branches, leading to ineffectual realisation of
the organisational goals.
Furthermore, the lack of internal controls over the smaller,
regional branches (often established in vulnerable regions) exposes them to the
various risks – from security to misuse of their infrastructure and programs by
interested parties such as local politicians and crime syndicates, and even
extremists. Much of the government welfare schemes in such regions too are
exposed to similar risks.
Applying a pervasive ‘corporate style’ governance structure
may not provide the full answer to the above challenges. However, without doubt
the management of the NGOs needs to have a greater focus on ensuring how
internal control mechanisms would work in a decentralised environment of
geographically spread out regional branches and sub-branches. Earmarking funds
and resources for such controls and monitoring is a necessity, some of which
must be mandated by regulation to that effect. This will further enhance the
quality of developmental work carried out by the sector on the whole, also
imparting integrity and respect to the work at the same time.
f)
Misuse of the Image of NGOs leads to Mistrust
Many NGOs have respectable brand equity and are associated
with high work ethics. They also often exercise significant level of influence
amongst ‘vulnerable communities’. These very aspects are exploited by anti
social elements to perpetrate crime and extremism using NGO fronts.
Weak governance policies and internal control systems lead
to fraudulent and corrupt practices. The domino effect: mistrust in the
voluntary sector further leading to reduction in donations and assistance, thus
hampering the overall goal of the sector. For the NGO sector, reputation
management and transparency are the primary ambassadors of building an
appropriate relationship with its stakeholders – most importantly, the public
and the volunteers.
g)
Bridging the gap between the Top-most Management and
the Grass-Root level Volunteers
NGOs as organisations tend to be founder-centric and are
expected to run according to a preset cause. Since the decisions are mainly
taken by the founders who also constitute the management, there is often a
separation of the organisation’s vision and the working of the field staff.
Founders hesitate to delegate decision-making and to empower lower level leadership.
Incidentally, our research shows that most often the stakeholders, particularly
the public and the communities, support the cause and not necessarily the NGO
brand. Hence, it is pivotal that there is no professional and visionary lacuna
among the top management of the NGO and its volunteers at the grass-root level.
This creates disparity in the vision, which translates into operational
inefficiency at the end. Also, such disintegration in the vision and mission
between the top management and the ground staff opens up avenues for corruption
and indulgence in unlawful activities.
h)
Strategic Leadership to provide Holistic
Guidance
Strategic leadership is of utmost importance to NGOs
since they are established with a clear humanitarian goal driven by a specific
cause. Unlike businesses, where a major part of strategic leadership effort
goes in assessing and deciding strategy for factors such as competitive forces
and changing market dynamics, there is a consistency and less unpredictability
with respect to strategy. On the other hand, the leadership of NGOs is required
to play a much greater role in building reputation and brand-equity, which would
attract donors and volunteers. In effect, it becomes pivotal for an NGO to put
forth a robust and focused vision and mission centred on its strategic
leadership. This, in turn, obviously must be supported by good planning and
consistent monitoring by the organization’s management to ensure that the
proposed philanthropic development and its objectives are being carried out.
Such measures can only enthuse a strong culture of
professionalism in the voluntary segment of India. After all, how well the voluntary
organization is equipped to deal with its deliverables will only translate into
operationally achieving the developmental activities. The core requirement of
strategic leadership is to provide a holistic guidance to the organisation with
an impetus on strategisation, reputation building, performance, monitoring and
improvisation.
The implementation of a strategic framework is essentially
important in the management of an NGO. The endorsement of such a framework
brings in professionalism and internal control mechanisms, which further makes
the organization’s performance more effective. Developing strategies also
include establishing a mechanism of consistent monitoring of whether they are
being implemented and linking the results to the organisation’s goals.
Conclusion
In recent times concerns have been
raised that trusts do not spend adequate amounts on their core objects. There
isn’t enough transparency in the administration of the trusts, resulting in
disproportionately high administrative expenses. Apparently to address these
concerns, further controls over trusts are introduced, providing that not more
than 50% of the foreign contribution received in a financial year by the trust
shall be utilised to meet administrative expenses. Administrative expenses
exceeding 50% can be defrayed only with the prior approval of the Central
Government, which will prescribe the elements that will be included in the
administrative expenses and the manner in which such administrative expenses
shall be calculated.
Unregulated
NPO activities in the past have known to be the conduits for money laundering
for organised crime. Global pressure is also growing on India to act urgently.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF)[7] has in its report identified fund
transfers from foreign non-profit organizations (NPOs) as one of the major
sources for terrorist financing in the country on par with counterfeiting of
currency, drug trafficking and extortion.
In particular, the Indian voluntary sector urgently needs ‘Self-Regulatory Guidelines’ and
transparency mechanisms to increase the trust and awareness as to how the
philanthropic funds are being utilised. This is a critical challenge that
creates a barrier to raising funds and capital for the sector. The general lack
of transparency in the functioning of a large proportion of NGOs leads to
aversion in donating funds for charitable causes since the general public is
largely cynical about the ‘genuineness’ of the non-profit spirit of the sector.
Inevitably, stringent governance standards of an NGO will
facilitate the effective management and increase the accountability to its
stakeholders including donors, the government and the community. It is in the
self-interest of the NGOs to realize the fact that it is equally important for
them to implement a structure of ‘Corporate
Governance Principles’ so that it is able to provide real value to the
stakeholders. Also, this would enable to track the dubious sources of funding
coming in for the voluntary sector – an aspect which has gained impetus in the
wake of the increased number of terror attacks and extremist activities.
At present, India has different
laws for administering the NPO sector, as some of the areas relating to
religious trusts and non-profit organisations fall under the State and
Concurrent List of the Constitution. Multiple Acts make monitoring of these
entities difficult as there is no centralized body to keep a tab on the sector,
raising concerns on the source and outflow of funds. Hence, there is a need for
a ‘National Framework Legislation’ to
support the NPO sector and to bring in the ‘Transparency & Accountability’ in this voluntary sector on the
lines of Uniform Trust Code of USA. In USA, the Uniform Trust Code (2000) will
provide States with precise, comprehensive, and easily accessible guidance on
trust law questions and provide a uniform rule. The Code also contains a number
of innovative provisions. The United States, Bangladesh and Nepal have
centralised agencies for registering and monitoring NPOs.
Philanthropy
is ingrained in the Indian psyche and a vast number of organisations do yeoman
work, they serve the most basic problems of the neediest of the needy, where
government machinery has woefully failed. Such organisations need to be
encouraged and provided with a framework where they can function efficiently
and effectively.
[Published
in Supreme Court Journal / Weekly
June, 2011; Part – 26]
[1] The
Economic Times Dated 11/02/2011
[3] NDTV Dated 26/04/2011
[4] Council for Advancement of People's Action and Rural Technology
(CAPART), an Autonomous Body functioning
under Rural Development Ministry.
[5] Times of India dated 20/12/2009
[6] The
HINDU, NEW DELHI, February
13, 2011
[7] FATF
is a global watchdog to monitor illicit flows and terror financing.
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