The Art of Effective Giving by R.M. Lala is another extremely readable book from the man who has given us several bestselling works like The Creation of Wealth, about the Tatas, and Beyond the Last Blue Mountain, a biography of J.R.D. Tata. Understandable then that this nice effort at getting others to emulate the generosity of some fabulous human beings, has a Foreword by Ratan Tata himself.
Lala has been the director of the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust for eighteen years and he cites examples of how, by giving, leading business enriched their own lives, practicing philanthropy with the same passion that they showed as entrepreneurs.
All across the world, as also in India, wealthy businessmen have set aside considerable portions of their fortunes for worthy causes like the eradication of diseases, removal of disparity and deprivation amongst the masses in a way that governments have not been and would never be able to. The examples of Microfosoft’s Bill Gates striving to eradicate poverty and Wipro’s Azim Premji putting out billions to improve primary education come to mind. So also the numerous institutions run by the Tatas that have positively impacted the lives of hundreds of thousands over several decades.
There are accounts of the large-heartedness of Bill and Melinda Gates, owner of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffet, who pledged $31 billion in stock of his Berkshire shares to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Andrew Carnegie believed that the accumulation of wealth was a good thing provided it was used for the benefit of others, and it was the responsibility of the rich to distribute their wealth in such a way that it is put to good use. He too gave away billions!
In India, it is only a handful of philanthropists who have been generous enough to really make the crucial difference between token gestures and real contribution to charity like Sir Jamshedjee Jejeebhoy, Jamsetji Tata, Sir Dorabji Tata, Sir Ratan Tata, Azim Premji.
These souls then serve as examples for us to follow in our own little ways, for compassion is greater than wealth, and learning to care is all that is necessary to make a difference.
India has the fourth largest number of billionaires and the highest number of poor in the world. Will our country’s well-heeled and insulated filthy rich ever think of taking one step to balance the equation?
The Art of Effective Giving
by R.M. Lala
HarperCollins
Publishers
Rs.299