We have all been asked for the odd rupee or two for charity when purchasing goods, tickets or food from online and offline stores. While the underlying sentiment is right, how big of an effect do you think these small donations create?
Well, not a very big one. As the contributions are extremely small, they rarely add up to something that can truly make an impact.
Now we, at Sqrrl, wanted to do our bit for the people in need. The idea was to inculcate a regular habit of giving among people so as to create long-term and sustainable change and not just provide incremental value.
So, we partnered with GiveIndia – India’s most trusted donations platform, to create a meaningful, long-lasting impact in the lives of the underprivileged Indians.
How it Works
With the GiveIndia integration, Sqrrl now allows you to donate every month to a cause of your choice. You can think of it like a monthly SIP, except that the results are more far reaching, with the potential to positively affect more than just a handful of lives.
In your dashboard, you can tap on the card which says “Sharing is Caring” (it really is!), and follow the screens. You can currently choose from three causes which focus on mid-day meals for school kids, nutrition for senior citizens who undergo cataract surgery, and education for underprivileged adolescents, respectively.
Available Programmes
At present, Sqrrl and GiveIndia offer these programmes for monthly giving. These can change at a later date, based on the donation goals being met.
Mission 10 Million Meals is an endeavor to deliver 10 million mid-day meals to school kids in one year. All it takes is 2000 donors committing to donating Rs. 2000 every month and 43,000 hungry children can be fed one hot meal every school day in 19 states across India.
Support the nutrition of poor cataract surgery patients by Sankara Eye Hospital, Pammal – the hospital provides free surgery to poor patients, along with nutritious food for the two days that they stay in the hospital. This helps in faster recovery of the patients.
Sponsor the education of poor adolescent children who would otherwise end-up dropping out and unable to pull themselves out of poverty. Every year 300+ youth are supported through this program and equip them to become role models in a community where aspirations are continuously stunted by the cycle of deprivation.
Completing the Transaction
- During the transaction phase, you will be asked to setup a standing instruction for a monthly recurring payment on your credit card or one of the supported debit cards.
- Once setup is complete, every first of the month, your card will be debited with the monthly donation amount. You can stop this at any time, so don’t be afraid to try it out.
- You will be able to see the donated amount from your investment dashboard. You will also get an email with your tax receipt, that can be used for tax exemption when filing tax returns.
Tax Benefits
All donations made via GiveIndia are exempt from income tax under Section 80G & 501(c)(3). For the most part, this means 50% of the donated amount, subject to a maximum limit of 10% of your gross income, can be claimed for deduction at the time of filing your income tax returns (ITR).
This is the first time a savings and investing product has launched a feature that extends the meaning of “investing” to the betterment of those who are genuinely in need of your support. You can start as small as Rs. 300, which could be a tiny fraction of your income, but which could go on to have a much larger effect and help feed or educate people with minimum effort.
Go ahead, try it out here – Giving!
And as always, do share your feedback with product@sqrrl.in. We would love to know how we can make this feature better!
thank you for sharing