Tata Trusts plans 40-50 not-for-profit hospitals amid controversy:’Money not enough to measure charity,’ says Noel Tata

Tata Trusts, India’s largest philanthropic group, disbursed ₹1,556.31 crore in the year to March 2026 and is now working toward a network of 40 to 50 not-for-profit general hospitals, Chairman Noel Tata said in the Trusts Annual Report for 2025-26. Tata said patients who can afford to pay would help fund care for those who cannot. The report gives no investment figure, locations, or timeline for the hospitals. In his message, Tata said the Trusts want to build institutions and models that become “enduring public assets” and be judged on what changes as a result of their work. He wrote that measuring philanthropy by people reached or money spent is no longer enough. Institutional grants and direct project spending came in at Rs 1,353.32 crore, and individual grants at Rs 202.99 crore. Rural upliftment took the largest share at Rs 457.62 crore, followed by education (Rs 270.26 crore), cancer care (Rs 178.46 crore), institutions (Rs 169.31 crore) and healthcare (Rs 105.97 crore). Water and sanitation received Rs 59.04 crore and nutrition Rs 57.64 crore. Individual grants were mainly medical (Rs 143.30 crore) and education (Rs 59.38 crore). The report sets out a health strategy for 2026-2031, covering about 75 blocks in core states and strengthening over 100 public health facilities in 35 high-priority districts. Targets include reaching a population of 25 lakh, cutting under-five mortality in intervention areas from 32 to 25 per 1,000 live births, and bringing primary care to 10 lakh elderly people. The Trusts also aim to upskill over 20,000 frontline workers. In FY26, the Cancer Care Programme recorded 1,06,626 outpatient consultations, 24,874 chemotherapy cycles and 2,879 surgeries, and gave radiotherapy to 29,638 patients. It served 13,031 new patients. Tata said talented young Indians often leave to find opportunities not available at home, and India needs institutions capable of nurturing them. He said the Trusts have incubated several institutions of national importance and may seek out other philanthropies to partner with them. The report points to the Indian Institute of Science, the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research and Tata Memorial Hospital as examples of the founders institution-building. Tata wrote that philanthropy in India is changing as a new generation of entrepreneurs brings more ambition to social causes, and that older institutions must respond by holding themselves to a higher standard of effectiveness and accountability. Tata ended with a caution that trying to become the biggest before becoming the best rarely ends well. “Trying to become the biggest before becoming the best rarely ends well. Our responsibility is to remain focused on what matters, and to do what India needs, in a way that creates lasting value.”
“We remain conscious that every rupee entrusted to us carries a responsibility. We will continue to use it with the care and purpose that responsibility demands,” he added.