New York – The American India Foundation (AIF) set a new record by raising $3 million on a single evening from its May 11th Awards Gala in New York City.  Proceeds will benefit AIF’s three pillars of development work in India:  Education, Livelihood, and Public Health.  To date, AIF has raised around $40 million for some of India’s most innovative non-profit organizations.

“We are very proud to see that AIF’s work resonates in the hearts and minds of the Indian Diaspora and supporters of India in the corporate sector throughout the United States. AIF’s agenda is not finished.  Our mission to speed development in India is not over. AIF has the power to create a common platform for philanthropic giving among Indian Americans. We will not stop until we bring about greater change in the areas of Education, Livelihood, and Public Health,” said Pradeep Kashyap, Executive Director, American India Foundation.

“AIF is using the leverage of its grants to move state governments in India to invest their resources as well. In the area of education, AIF and its partner Janarth supports nearly 25,000 children—this now has Maharashtra State Government support. The benefits of such government partnerships are clear – they allow more leverage for everyone’s investment, and increase our ability to scale these solutions faster.” Rajat Gupta, Co-Chair, American India Foundation.

AIF honored Martin Sullivan, President and CEO, American International Group, Inc., and Deepak S. Parekh, Chairman of Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd., both of whom spoke of their commitment to India and their admiration for the work of AIF. 

Commenting on the scale and institutional capacity generated by AIF in India, Victor Menezes, Co-Chair, American India Foundation, said “AIF’s impact has been spectacular. We invested $400,000 with AIF grant partner SAATH in Ahmedabad to provide vocational training to 25,000 urban youth in 15 towns, aged 18-35 years to improve work skills required in high-job growth industries. Hence in Gujarat, AIF has leveraged support from the state government, resulting in an AIF grant receiving 3:1 support from the state, thus maximizing its impact.

In another example, 250,000 children have access to improved education because they can use computers and the Internet through the Digital Equalizer program.” 

AIF continues to be in a unique position of enabling the Indian Diaspora and friends of India in the U.S., including the corporate community, to contribute and give back to India.  Through the Service Corps Fellowship, AIF is developing awareness on Indian development among a new generation of young American leaders. Every year, approximately 25 to 30 young Americans spend 10 months volunteering with NGOs in India. To date, AIF has sent 140 Fellows to work with 65 Indian NGOs, and another 30 will be heading to India this September.