Azim Premji, chairman of India's third largest IT firm, Wipro, has been ranked the "most generous Indian" for the third consecutive year in 2015, according to a list released by Hurun India Philanthropy.
Premji donated Rs 27,514 crore for education through The Azim Premji foundation, which operates in eight states and runs over 3.5 lakh schools.
"This is the third successive year Premji has topped the philanthropy list," said Hurun Research Institute, which released the ranking.
In July last year, Premji had allocated an additional 18% of the stake he holds in Wipro to philanthropy, taking his total contribution to charity to more than 50% of his wealth. Premji's 73.39% stake in Wipro was valued at about Rs 99,500 crore.
Premji had roped in Amnesty India head G Anantha Padmanabhan in 2014 to establish a separate unit that focuses on donating to charities.
According to a statement from Hurun Research Institute, former Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani and wife Rohini Nilekani stood at the second spot in the list donating Rs 2,404 crore. NR Narayana Murthy & family were ranked third in the list with a contribution of Rs 1,322 crore.
"Despite weak corporate earnings in 2015 compared to last year, the increasing speed of wealth creation seems to promise a bright future for Indian philanthropy," The Economic Times quoted Anas Rahman Junaid, Business Head, Hurun Report India, as saying.
K Dinesh, who was one of co-founders of Infosys, occupied the fourth position in the list, making donations worth Rs 1,238 crore. He has been "active" in philanthropic ventures in education, entrepreneurship encouragement and healthcare.
"Education is the cause that India's philanthropists feel they can make the biggest difference in," said Rupert Hoogewerf, Chairman and Chief Researcher of Hurun Report.
HCL co-founder Shiv Nadar has been ranked as the fifth-most generous Indian in the list. Nadar donated Rs 525 crore through the Shiv Nadar Foundation, which support various charitable activities.
Mukesh Ambani, the CEO of Reliance Industries, is at sixth spot in the list, donating Rs 345 crore for healthcare through the Reliance Foundation.
