 "Tata Trusts' activities should be protected: NGOs write letter to Tata board")
NGOs working with Tata Trusts on Tuesday expressed their concern over the recent developments in the Tata group and appealed to the stakeholders to ensure that the Trusts' activities were protected and allowed to grow in the coming years.
In a joint letter to the board members of group companies, including TCS, Tata Motors, Tata Chemicals, and Tata Power, among others, the civil society organisations raised alarm and expressed their unhappiness about unwarranted questions being asked about Tata Trusts and the development work done under their aegis.
"The Tata Trusts have always maintained a dignified low profile and we, the partners, haven't felt the need to talk about the impact of our collaborations with the Trusts either, till now.
"But we are deeply concerned that the current environment might have implications on the Trusts, which would have serious consequences on the functioning of civil society actors," the letter said.
It further said that the civil society organisations, and in turn, the 'have nots' of India in the communities they work in, have been the beneficiaries of Tatas' generosity.
No other organisation in India was as central to the growth and vibrancy of the civil society, erstwhile known as the voluntary sector, as the Tata Group, spearheaded by the Trusts.
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Lauding the efforts of the Trusts in their joint letter, leaders of various Non Government Organisations said that they have no reason to believe the future will be any different, with or without the CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) law.
The NGOs include Pradan, Seva Mandir, Srijan, Action for Social Development, Foundation for Ecological Security and Aga Khan Rural Support Programme.