Union Ministry of Home Affairs approval must for Hewlett to fund NGOs

New Delhi, March 20

The government has made it mandatory for the Hewlett Foundation, one of the top American philanthropic institutions, to get prior permission from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs before donating funds to any of the Indian NGOs, officials said today.

The Hewlett Foundation gave over $465 million to scores of organisations globally, including in India, in 2020. It provides funds to the NGOs working in diverse fields of education, environment, gender equity and governance. A senior MHA official said the American donor has been put on the ‘Prior Reference Category (PRC)’ under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010 (FCRA). Placing on the PRC or the MHA’s watch list means the foreign donor will not be able to send any fund to any NGO in India without prior approval of the government.

It is alleged that the funds provided by the Hewlett Foundation were used by the Indian NGOs for purposes not allowed under the FCRA, the official said while refusing to share the details.The foundation was established in 1966 by William R Hewlett and his wife Flora Lamson Hewlett with their son Walter Hewlett.

The government has cancelled the FCRA registration of nearly 1,900 NGOs in the past five years. —