the fifth estate
22
APPLICANT ORGANIzATION
1.
e applicant organization must be a registered entity and qualify the defined eligibility criteria. Further, the name on the
application form must match with the registration certificate and other regulatory documents such as PAN, Audited
Financials, 80G, 12A, FCRA, etc.
2.
e organization must have adequate experience of working in rural areas in India.
3.
e by-laws of the organization must allow it to undertake a project in the proposed thematic category.
4.
e organization must have a good rapport with the local administration in the proposed project’s location.
5.
e organization, including its governing body members, must not have any pending litigations.
6.
e organization must not be blacklisted by any government agency/department/ministry, donor, or international agency.
7.
e organization must not have faced cancellation of its license/registration/membership, etc., from the regulatory and/or
statutory body. ese shall cover (but not be limited to) FCRA, EPF, PT, Income Tax, 12A, 80G, GST, PAN, etc.
8.
e organization, including governing board members, must not have any negative media coverage or any other controversy
associated with it.
9.
e organization or its board members or employees must not have any political or religious affiliations.
10.
e organization (if announced as winner or runners-up) must open a separate and new bank account for HCLTech Grant Funds.
PROPOSED PROJECT
1. e proposed project must be in line with the provisions of Schedule VII of Section 135 of e Companies Act, 2013 and the
CSR Rules 2014, and its amendments/clarifications.
2. e proposed project must be in rural area/s.
3. e proposed project must be designed for direct implementation by the applicant organization. Sub-granting of HCL funds
is not allowed.
4. e proposed project must be designed for a grant amount of
`
5 Crores (to be received from HCLFoundation) for a period of
4 years. It can be co-funded by a suitable donor that the applicant organization can bring onboard for any additional amount.
However, HCLFoundation must be apprised of all funders and stakeholders in advance. Additionally, the organization must
report the utilization, outreach, and impact explicitly achieved through the HCLTech Grant fund.
5. e Grant amount must not be used solely for infrastructure development such as construction, renovation, purchase of fixed
assets like land, buildings, and vehicles, among others. Further, proposed infrastructure development costs must be spent in
line with project objectives and activities defined.
6. HCLTech Grant funds can be used to scale-up an existing project or for a new project where co-funding is involved. However,
HCLFoundation must be apprised of all funders and stakeholders in advance. Additionally, the organization must be able to
report the utilisation, outreach and impact achieved specifically through the HCLTech Grant fund.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
PREREQUISITES
1. e organization must be a registered not for profit entity in India i.e. either a Society or a Trust or a Section 8 (previously Section
25) company or any other organization (as prescribed under Section 135 of e Companies Act, 2013, the CSR Rules 2014, and
its amendments).
2. e organization must have registered u/s 12A of e Income-tax, 1961. (including organizations who have successfully submitted
application for renewal of 12A certificate, subject to further scrutiny.)
3. e organization must have registered u/s 12A of e Income-tax, 1961. (including organizations who have successfully submitted
application for renewal of 12A certificate, subject to further scrutiny.)
4. e organization must have registered with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs as CSR Implementing Agency through Form No.
CSR-1. (including organizations who have successfully submitted application, subject to further scrutiny)
5. e organization must have the below-mentioned functional existence (as per their registration certificate) in India on or before
31st March 2023:
•
If applying under Education, Health and Environment category – minimum 5 years or above
6. e organization must have the below mentioned average expenditure (as per income & expenditure account) for the last three
financial years viz. 2019-20, 2020-21 2021-22:
•
If applying under Education and Health category – minimum
`
1 Crores or above
•
If applying under Environment category – minimum
`
0.50 Crores or above
7. e organization must be in full compliance with applicable regulatory rules and must have valid documents for registration,
audited financial reports, etc. Further, the organization must have valid and timely submissions for requisite statutory and
regulatory compliances (wherever applicable). ese shall cover (but not limited to) income tax, employee provident fund,
professional tax, minimum wages, employee state insurance, goods and service tax and FCRA and / or other relevant regulation
depending on the nature of funding/donations it receives.