Azim Premji, India’s most generous billionaire, has announced a fresh bequest to his eponymous philanthropic initiative that boosts his total commitment to Rs 1.45 lakh crore ($21 billion), making it one of the five largest private endowments in the world and the biggest in Asia. This has cemented the 73-year-old billionaire’s place alongside the world’s most influential philanthropists including Bill Gates, George Soros and Warren Buffett. 
On Wednesday, Premji announced that all earnings from approximately 34% shares of India’s fourth-largest software services exporter WiproNSE -0.38 % — worth about Rs 52,750 crore ($7.5 billion) — would be transferred to the endowment that supports the Azim Premji Foundation. 

With this, Premji has committed earnings from 67% of Wipro’s shares to the charitable foundation. The Premji family and entities controlled by them hold a 74.30% stake in the software exporter. 

“It takes a bold mind like Azim (Premji) to commit so much,” said Nilekani. “He will really be able to innovate and find ways to address increasingly complex societal problems in India.” 

Premji’s announcement comes at a critical moment for Indian philanthropy. 

Donations have Declined 
The Indian Philanthropy Report released last week by Bain & Company estimated that excluding contributions by the Bengaluru based software mogul, donations of Rs 10 crore and above have declined 4% in India since 2014 even as the proportion of the ultra-rich — those with a net worth of over $50 million — grew by 12%. 

“Premji’s grant for the nation matches only what Jamsetji Tata and Dorabji Tata have done from a historical perspective,” sa ..