CARE India Winds Up Operations After Suspension Of Foreign Funding Licence

New Delhi: CARE India is winding up its operations and February 29 will be the final working day for the majority of its staff.

“It is a sad day for me,” a former staff of CARE said, recalling his association with the organisation.

In June 2023, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) suspended its foreign funding licence for 180 days over alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010. Subsequently, in early October, the Income Tax department revoked the tax exemption status of the organisation along with that of three others- Oxfam India, Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment, and Environics Trust.

The authorities had then seized computers and laptops from their premises in Delhi, Mumbai and Surat. Though the company did not receive any communication regarding any findings from the raids, working conditions had become challenging, the former official added.

In 2016, the CBI had also recovered a file on CARE India from the residence of Anand Joshi, a Home Ministry under secretary who was accused of trading FCRA information with NGOs and arbitrarily issuing notices to some of them to extract money.

CARE India, a non-governmental organisation, is a part of CARE International Confederation and has been working for the past 70 years with the aim of ending poverty and social exclusion.