To equate philanthropy with charity is to misunderstand the nature and role of philanthropy. Charity springs from compassion and is a spontaneous response to distress. It is only palliative and cannot bring about lasting social change. In his article, Think Before You Give (goo.gl/BFF6VJ), Saubhik Chakrabarti argues that India does not need philanthropy because it cannot solve problems of poverty and development and so, rather than let philanthropists spend their wealth on social causes of their choice, it is far better to tax their wealth for development spending by government. It will have, according to Chakrabarti, a greater impact on poverty.

Such an argument is based on three flawed assumptions:

1. That philanthropy and charity are synonymous.

2. That philanthropists do philanthropy at the cost of their more fundamental social function of creating jobs and economic opportunities.

3. That government is a better spender than private individuals.........click for more

Source: Economic Times

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