INDIA’S HOSTILITY TO EXTERNAL CHARITIES

• India has long prided itself on its independence when it comes to dealing with humanitarian crises and, more recently, it has asserted its confidence in administering long-term development gains without external donations or, as the government sees it, outside interference.

At the start of this year, India blocked up to 6,000 NGOs and charities working in the country from accepting overseas funding; 179 civil society organisations had their licences revoked. Other impositions include a spending limit of 20 per cent on administrative costs, such as staff and offices, and a ban on non-profit organisations transferring money to other groups.

Charities affected by the ruling include Oxfam, which has worked in India for 70 years, the Missionaries of Charity, founded by Mother Theresa, and Amnesty International, which had its bank account frozen. Oxfam said that its work in India would be ‘severely affected’ after it lost its licence to receive funds from abroad. Amnesty accused the government of a ‘witch hunt’. ActionAid says it’s essential to move funds between the many smaller partners with which larger NGOs work.

The Indian government has progressively imposed regulations and restrictions on charities since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014. The government says that it’s merely requiring charities to adhere to high standards of financial probity and working to improve accountability and transparency in the use of foreign funding.