Licence of 4,470 NGOs cancelled

 In another round of action against erring NGOs, the government has cancelled the licence of 4,470 such entities that surprisingly included a number of top universities, Supreme Court Bar Association and Escorts Heart Institute, which bars them from receiving foreign funds.

The decision to cancel the registration of these entities under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) has been taken by the Union Home Ministry, after the examination of their activities that allegedly include non-filing of annual returns and other anomalies.

All associations were given proper notice by the Foreigners Division of the Home Ministry with adequate time to reply before their FCRA licences were cancelled, official sources said. Other prominent organisations whose FCRA licences were cancelled include Panjab University, Chandigarh, Gujarat National Law University, Gargi College, Delhi, Lady Irwin College Delhi, Vikram Sarabhai Foundation and Kabir floated by Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.

In the last round of crackdown, licences of nearly 9,000 NGOs were cancelled in April last for <g data-gr-id="24">alleged</g> violation of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA). 

In January, Greenpeace India activist Priya Pillai was off-loaded from a London-bound flight by immigration officers in New Delhi airport. She was to have addressed British parliamentarians there.

The Delhi High Court later overturned the action by the Home Ministry and Pillai’s “<g data-gr-id="21">off load</g>” passport stamp was expunged in May.

The Centre had in April blocked Greenpeace India’s bank accounts, following which the environmental group had to seek interim relief from the Delhi High Court.

In April, <g data-gr-id="23">government</g> had ordered that funds coming from US-based Ford Foundation should not be released by any bank to any Indian NGO without permission from the Home Ministry.