Rohini Nilekani Sells Infosys Shares, Raises $27 Million For Charity

Rohini Nilekani, wife of Infosys cofounder Nandan Nilekani, disclosed Friday that she has recently sold 577,000 shares out of the 8 million shares that she holds in the outsourcer. The sale reduced her stake marginally from 1.41% to 1.31% which is still worth close to $370 million. The funds from the share sale, amounting to $27 million pre-tax, will be deployed in various charities in the areas of water, education, environment and governance that Nilekani supports.

The dark side of Urjapradesh

While the debate over an eco-sensitive zone rages, Uttarakhand has not even defined
minimum environmental flows for its rivers.
Uttarakhand is rightly termed the abode of the gods, with its magnificent mountains, pristine forests and awe-inspiring rivers. It is a place sacred in our culture, and millions of tourists and pilgrims pay homage
to its beauty every year.

India booked!

To keep its date with the International Literacy Day Pratham Books, an NGO in the space of literacy is attempting to bring together children from across the country in a uhique book reading endeavour. Says Suzanne Singh, managing trustee, “We have a mission to see a book in every child’s hand. This endeavour is just one step in this direction.”

Aqua Dreams – Rohini Nilekani looks with satisfaction as Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh launches India Water Portal

Rohini Nilekani, a philanthropist, journalist, author and social activist, has understood water management with all its complexities, and has channeled her efforts through Arghyam, which she founded. It’s no surprise that in late 2010 Arghyam was requested by the Planning Commission to collate civil society inputs on drinking water and sanitation for the approach paper to the 12th Five Year Plan.

Uncommon Ground – Rohini Nilekani

This book of conversations between people holding different points of view has a deliberately misleading title.
Because Rohini Nilekani has managed to show that in the most uncommon of grounds, between the most adversarial
of positions, there can be found something in common if the two sides are willing to at least try and see the other’s point of view; to listen to the other’s argument.

Constructive Dialogues

The social responsibility of A business is to increase its profits,” wrote Friedman in the New York Times magazine in 1970. While there’d be fewer takers of his doctrine in the present day corporate world, the subject is still not a comfortable one to debate.
And that’s precisely why Nilekani’s Uncommon Ground makes for a good read. It explores the middle ground between the ideological divisions that often polarise the business and voluntary sectors.

Negotiating Social Harmony – Uncommon ground – Rohini Nilekani

No servant can serve two masters: for either he wall hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” From Biblical times, this has been the conventional wisdom.
But humbly correcting the dictum is philanthropist, journalist and activist, Rohini Nilekani, who is famous
for being one of the backstage players of Infosys, in UNCOMMON GROUND.
In the new world, where the distance between business and social spheres are blurring increasingly, wealth does not hinder one from pursuing social good.

Bringing the Indian Industry Close to Conscience Keepers

A ROLE MODEL for women around the world, the gracefully beautiful Rohini Nilekani is equally at ease with her many avatars: the founder of three not for profit organisations focused on water and healthcare, education and children’s books; the sparkling author of both racy thrillers and insightful books that cross-link the diverse issues facing the nation.
Rohinl Nilekani’s new book, Uncommon Ground (Penguin), Is an example of her sharp intelligence and tested networking skills being put to work to pull off a seemingly impossible feat — getting together the doyens of the corporate world with their critics from civil society.