India's social spending is seeing steady growth, primarily driven by the public sector, the latest India Philanthropy Report 2025 by Bain & Company in collaboration with Dasra noted. However, despite being the fifth-largest economy globally, India is facing a significant funding deficit in the social sector, which is anticipated to increase over the next five years.
According to the latest India Philanthropy Report 2025, released on Wednesday, the top four business families in India — Tatas, Ambanis, Adanis, and the Birlas — were responsible for 20% of the total corporate social responsibility (CSR) contributions made by family-owned or family-run companies in the fiscal year 2023-24. On average, the top four families contributed between Rs 800 crore to Rs 1,000 crore per family group, ranging from Rs 200 crore to Rs 1,500 crore.
Additionally, the report highlights the significant impact of the top 2% of business families, who manage around 350 firms, as they accounted for over 50-55% of the total CSR contributions made by family-owned or family-run businesses. Other notable business families included in this category are the Munjals of Hero MotoCorp, the Piramal family of Piramal Enterprises, and the Kanwar family of Apollo Tyres, each contributing an average of Rs 20-25 crore.
"Family-owned/ run firms have been critical to India's growth story, championing corporate responsibility long before the 2014 mandate requiring CSR contributions. Family-owned/ run businesses contribute 65%–70% of private-sector CSR spending annually, totaling approximately Rs 18,000 crore ($2.2 billion), with the top 2% of family-owned/ run firms contributing 50%–55% of the total family-owned/ run businesses’ CSR contribution, highlighting the outsized role of a few key players," the report noted.
The report highlighted that while the top 2 per cent of firms made significant CSR contributions, the remaining 98 per cent, made up of over 16,500 companies, collectively accounted for 45-50 per cent of CSR contributions. These companies had an average spend of Rs 1 crore each, with amounts ranging from Rs 50 lakh to as high as Rs 7 crore. The majority of these contributions came from small and medium enterprises, midsized enterprises, and micro, small, and medium enterprises.
According to the initial projections, affluent families are expected to allocate between Rs 70,000-75,000 crore by FY29 for philanthropic endeavours. However, the report indicates that there are numerous unexplored avenues for these families to enhance their charitable contributions by 1.5 to 1.7 times within the next five years.
CSR investment by HNIs
In the fiscal year 2024, despite significant Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) investments by family-owned businesses, there was a slight decrease in contributions from high net worth individuals (HNIs) and ultra high net worth individuals (UHNIs). Their combined contributions dropped to 26% of total private-sector philanthropic funding, down from 27% in the previous year.
The drop was primarily attributed to a modest 2% increase in UHNI funding. Meanwhile, overall private-sector philanthropic funding saw a 7% annual growth in FY24, reaching Rs 1.31 trillion.
CSR investment by public sector vs private sector
The report highlighted that public spending primarily drives CSR funding, making up 95% of total funding. It is projected to reach approximately Rs 45 lakh crore ($550 billion; 9.6% of GDP) by FY 2029. Despite significant growth in funding, the sector falls short of estimates by NITI Aayog, with a gap of around Rs 14 lakh crore ($170 billion) in FY 2029, expected to increase to Rs 16 lakh crore ($195 billion) by then.
Public spending has been growing at a rate of approximately 13% annually over the past five years, reaching around Rs 23 lakh crore ($280 billion; 7.9% of GDP) in FY 2024. It is projected to increase to approximately Rs 43 lakh crore ($525 billion; 9.1% of GDP) by FY 2029, driven by higher growth in healthcare and a moderate increase in education spending.
On the other hand, private spending experienced more moderate growth, with a 7% increase from FY 2023 to FY 2024, reaching around Rs 131,000 crore ($16 billion).
However, private spending is expected to accelerate to 10%–12% growth over the next five years, largely driven by family philanthropy from ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNIs), high-net-worth individuals (HNIs), and affluent individuals.