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NGOs in India have more funding opportunities now than ever before, Read how

No doubt funds for NGOs have increased in India though prolonged funding remains a challenge. With long-term financial sustainability in mind, NGOs in India have started organizing and addressing forums about the causes they believe in and their area of work to generate interest and thereby greater avenues for donations.

The world does not need more doctors and engineers. It needs people who can show empathy towards their brethren. No wants to be sympathized with. What matters is if you have the ability to realize the situation some people find themselves trapped in or understand their feelings. India is likely to be backed by the biggest workforce by 2027, which also means greater responsibility on the shoulders of an average Indian. The government is trying its best by bringing forth well-designed plans to help people develop to their full potential, but is government aid enough? And this is where the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) chip in doing their best towards a common social cause.

Every NGO works towards a particular cause. Be it providing food and shelter to the derelict, education to the unprivileged, imparting the necessary skill to the backward and unemployed, each NGO strives ahead with the common vision to make the world a better living place. However, this does not come for free. Necessary amounts of funds for NGOs in India are necessary to keep the institutions working seamlessly. While the incumbent government and local organizations support the working of these organizations by making necessary financial contributions, fundraisers associated with various NGOs or social organizations look for relevant funding opportunities from individual donors, corporations and big foundations. Celebrities and businessmen contribute their lot by making small grants for Indian NGOs, though most of them do it only to avail tax concessions available under various sections of the Income Tax Act.

This raises the pertinent question concerning funding opportunities for NGOs in India. Till date, not many were aware of the efforts put in by various NGOs. However, the pervasiveness of social media has made people aware of the society around themselves and its rising needs. Funding opportunities for NGOs in India have increased considerably in the past few years with more people contributing their earnings towards social causes as opposed to the small grants for Indian NGOs till date.

Also, most NGOs in India now enjoy an online presence. One can find information about their working and funding details on their website. This, in turn, raises the funding opportunities for Indian NGOs in 2018 as more people come forward to donate towards causes they identify with. There is an increase in the number of donors worldwide seeking information about Indian NGOs and funding their projects on a regular basis. Foreign funding sources and consequently the funds for NGOs in India have increased as the number of NGOs has gone up. As per data collected and collated in July 2016, more than 33,000 NGOs were registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. Government statistics highlight how foreign organizations had funded more than 3,000 NGOs to the tune of roughly Rs. 22,000 crores in 2014-15.

Though faith-based charities attract more funds from foreign lands, these funds received by various NGOs spread across the entire nation are spent on rural development, child welfare projects, construction and maintenance of schools, colleges and research centers. This means that opportunities are more and better than before.

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Written by Mike