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Shama A Kasbekar
The Sir Dorabji Tata Trust (SDTT), one
of the oldest, non-sectarian philanthropic organisations
in India, celebrates 75 years of dedication to nation-building
activities. The trustees of the SDTT have always maintained
that the real heroes are the people who work on the
field, with the community, for the community, at the
grassroots. But ask the NGOs (non governmental organisations)
and individuals who have been able to fulfil their mission
because of the grants received from the trust, and they’ll
tell you another story. Their labour of love might never
have touched so many lives without the helping hand
of the SDTT
One
of the two main Tata trusts, SDTT was established in
1932 by Sir Dorabji, son of the founder of the Tata
Group, Jamsetji Tata. Celebrating 75 years of service
to the nation this year, the trust is a venerated old
institution. But from day one, its outlook has been
progressive and ahead of its times. Its genesis was
an act of matchless generosity and farsightedness: Sir
Dorabji bequeathed all his wealth, estimated then at
Rs1 crore, including the famed 245-carat Jubilee diamond
and substantial shares in Tata Sons, the holding company
of the Group, to the trust, just before his death.
This
became the basis for the unique holding structure of
the Tata Group as it is today. The Sir Dorabji Tata
Trust, the Sir Ratan Tata Trust and other allied trusts
together own 65.8 per cent of the shares of Tata
Sons.
SDTT
is Sir Dorabji’s legacy of hope to the people of
India. As Sarosh N Batliwalla, secretary and chief accountant
of the SDTT, puts it, “The trust has carried forward
the vision of the founder and played a progressive role
in the development of the nation.”
From
its inception to 2005-06, the total amount of funds
disbursed by the trust was Rs379.87 crore; in 2005-06,
the amount was Rs76.2 crore. This has been invested
in "constructive philanthropy” as Jamsetji
called it, which, in essence, means giving a hungry
man a fishing rod rather than a fish. But there is no
fixed mandate for the kind of projects that the trust
takes up. This, in part, is why the trust has been so
successful in reaching out to people in a way that will
benefit them the most.
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Take
the pioneering role it has played — and continues
to play — in setting up institutions that have
contributed to the growth of India: The Tata Institute
of Social Sciences (1936); Tata Memorial Hospital (1941);
Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (1945); National
Centre for the Performing Arts (1966), National Institute
of Advanced Studies (1988); JRD Tata Ecotechnology Centre
(1996); Sir Dorabji Tata Centre for Research in Tropical
Diseases 1999); TISS School of Rural Development at
Tuljapur (2004) and the Tata Medical Centre in Kolkata
(to be operational by end-2007).
From
setting up institutions and funding social development
projects to responding to national calamities, SDTT’s
portfolio spans an amazing range of projects. Perhaps
the smallest grant ever given by the trust is one mentioned
by Russi Lala, former director of SDTT, in his book,
the Heartbeat of a Trust, for a pair of spectacles
for a man who could not afford to buy it and who could
not function normally without one. The amount: Rs125!
Making a difference
The process of choosing the right
projects to fund is a meticulous and painstaking one,
as each individual appeal for help has to be carefully
understood and processed. The satisfaction comes from
finding the needle in the haystack of appeals for funds,
the needle which will thread the people of the community
together, weave the community to the nation, and finally
create a fabric that is enduring.
Once a grant is sanctioned, SDTT
prefers to take a backseat. The beneficiary organisations
or individuals work without undue interference, secure
in the knowledge that the trust will come to their aid
whenever they ask for.
Over the years, the trust’s
operational style has evolved in keeping with changing
times. With strategy, planning and processes gaining
more and more importance, modern management practices
are replacing the earlier intuitive style of working.
Programme coordinator Nayantara
Sabavala, who has been with the trust for the past ten
years, has been a part of this process of evolution.
She says, “There is a growing recognition that
philanthropy too needs to become more ‘professional’,
with a more structured approach to its activities and
a deeper understanding of the issues involved. Reflecting
on whom the project is going to benefit and how, whether
it is going to be sustainable in the long run or not,
and other such issues, has become a crucial part of
our work and is closely linked to the kind of choices
we have to make on a day-to-day basis on which programme
to support.”
When asked about the best part
about working with the trust, Sabavala promptly replies,
“Everybody talks about what is wrong in India;
they miss an opportunity to see everything that is right!
It opens your eyes to all the good things that have
happened despite all the gloom, despair and negative
media reports. It shows there are people who are extremely
courageous, who work under extremely hard conditions
and still manage to make a difference.”
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Making a difference to the lives
of the people of India is the key motivation for all
those who work for the SDTT. It is this spirit that
permeates its office in Mumbai, as emails and letters
for help pour in. It is the 75th anniversary of the
trust but the focus is not on hype and hoopla but the
work that still needs to be done. Tough decisions will
have to be made, sometimes heartbreaking ones too. But
the task becomes a little bit easier because this unique
brand of philanthropy has become imprinted in the genealogy
of the House of Tatas. The six stories that follow bear
testimony to how SDTT helps to make our tomorrows brighter.
Uploaded on July 4, 2007
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