Programmes since 2001

The work, project by project.

Twenty-eight programmes across six countries — some completed, many ongoing. Grouped here by the four areas we focus on.

6 programmes

Health & Wellbeing

Care for the vulnerable — from blood supply and thalassemia treatment to oxygen provision and inclusion of the differently abled.

Howrah Blood Bank — 2023 Update

Howrah, West Bengal, India

The Howrah Blood Bank was formally gifted to the Lions Club of Howrah in June 2023, together with a Blood Collection and Transportation Vehicle. A Thalassemia Unit launched on World Thalassemia Day in May 2024 and continues to provide regular blood transfusions, and blood donation camps and drives have run continuously since 2023. As Sudhir Maheshwari has shared, this project fulfilled his late father's philanthropic vision.

Howrah Blood Bank and Thalassemia Clinic

Jadurberia Hospital, Howrah, West Bengal, India

Addressing the long-standing need for a well-functioning private blood bank in Howrah — a densely urbanised city of five million on the western bank of the Hooghly River, across from Kolkata. Total project cost: under INR 1 crore (~US$150,000). Delayed by Covid, the Blood Bank was inaugurated in June 2023.

Covid-19 — Oxygen Concentrators

West Bengal, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, New Delhi

Donated 25 European oxygen concentrators (5 lpm and 10 lpm) during India's second COVID wave. Distributed across Lions Hospitals in West Bengal, Future Hope School Kolkata, the Society of Indian Children's Welfare, the Kailash Satyarthi Bal Ashram in Viratnagar, Jagriti Foundation Jaipur, and Rural Hospital Dangsaundane in Nasik.

Manzil Centre of Disabilities

Sharjah, UAE

Manzil is a non-profit centre in Sharjah promoting inclusion through a professional learning environment for people with disabilities. Their work nurtures students' self-help, social, educational and vocational skills — the foundation supports their mission of shaping an inclusive society.

Bhuj Earthquake Hospital

Bhuj, Gujarat, India

Following the 2001 Gujarat earthquake — which caused considerable and unprecedented loss of life — the foundation constructed a 40-bed hospital in Bhuj in 2002, in collaboration with the Lions Club.

Filtered Drinking Water — 2025

In 2025 the foundation installed three filtered water coolers — at a Don Bosco school and at a Swami Narayan Temple — giving students and visitors reliable access to clean, safe drinking water.

11 programmes

Education & Opportunity

Long-term scholarships and school support — from a village pre-school in Howrah to higher education in Kolkata, with stops in Sharjah, Delhi and beyond.

The Deo Kumar Maheshwari Scholarship for Social Work

A scholarship in memory of Late Deo Kumar Maheshwari, founding trustee. Launched to support deserving Indian students in Social Work, it has since grown to fund students in India, Uganda and the Philippines — including eight students at St Xavier's University, Kolkata since 2021.

Maheshwari School For All

Gondalpara and Katliya villages, Howrah

Pre-school holistic education for underprivileged children aged 2–6 — poetry, singing, art, sketching, geography, dance, puzzle-solving, and reading and writing in Bengali and English. Children also receive nutritious daily meals and hygiene instruction.

Kailash Satyarthi Children's Foundation

Hosted Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi for a three-day, six-event visit reaching more than 3,000 participants. KSCF works on the principle that every child has the right to live freely, work safely, and be healthy — through Compassion, Street to School, and Child Safety programmes.

Cricket Kit & Practice Net for Bal Ashram Boys

Bal Ashram, Viratnagar, Rajasthan

Angana Maheshwari's birthday fundraiser raised over US$3,000 to distribute personalised India team cricket kits, training shoes and steel water bottles to all 70 boys at Bal Ashram, and to install a professional cricket practice net on the grounds.

Educational Sponsorships

Multi-programme support across Future Hope and St Xavier's, Kolkata (five female undergraduates); Tawoon's WAJD Program in Gaza (a child orphaned in 2014); Vedanta Academy in India; Manzil in Sharjah; and the Society of Indian Children's Welfare in Kolkata.

St. Xavier's University, Kolkata

Kolkata, India

Founded in 1860 by the Society of Jesus, St Xavier's is a Christian Minority Higher Educational Institution. Trustees of the foundation helped raise nearly US$4 million in 2013 toward the modern Business School development at Rajarhat, and since 2021 the foundation has funded eight students' studies — INR 16,80,000 to date.

Future Hope

Kolkata, India

Future Hope provides opportunity through its homes, school and medical programme for some of the most vulnerable children from the streets and slums of Kolkata. The work focuses on three primary initiatives: Street to School, Life Skills, and Transformation.

Stepping Stone Day Care Centre

New Friends Colony, Delhi

Empowering special-needs underprivileged children to live with more independence and dignity. Services included daily private transport with qualified staff, nutritious meals, hygiene education, full-time special-needs teachers, physiotherapy, dance, arts, crafts and vocational training. Many children won awards in art and dance competitions, and several were absorbed into mainstream schools.

Uganda Education Scholar

Bwindi, Uganda

Since July 2023, the foundation has paid the annual school tuition fees of a young girl in Bwindi, Uganda — supporting her education from kindergarten onwards, as part of the Deo Kumar Maheshwari Scholarship.

Philippines Education Scholar

Nueva Ecija, Philippines

From March 2021, the foundation supported a student in Nueva Ecija from Senior High School through university — paying half his tuition, plus food and transport allowances and school fees. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting Information Systems on 7 May 2026.

Udayan — Setu 2026

Kolkata, West Bengal, India

At Setu 2026, SVP India Kolkata Chapter's evening of giving, the foundation committed INR 32 lakh to Udayan — a Kolkata-based residential home and school for children from families affected by leprosy. Our support has begun and is ongoing.

8 programmes

Community Relief

Showing up in moments of crisis, and feeding those who feed cities — from labour camps in Dubai to villages in Batangas.

Ramadan Donation Drive

Dubai labour camps

Every Ramadan since 2023, the foundation has distributed essentials to labour camps and mosques in Dubai — rice, cooking oil, lentils, detergent, bath soaps, toothpaste and shaving blades, packed in eco-friendly bags. Our food distribution has now reached more than 6,000 people. An earlier drive during COVID found one camp that once housed 300 men sheltering only 64.

A Snippet of 2022

Howrah, Kolkata, Dubai, Rajasthan

A 2022 year-in-review across literacy, hunger and health. ~60 children supported at Maheshwari School For All; 8 DKM scholarships awarded; food sponsorship for cow shelters and 500 children at a Paralympics event; an electric water cooler installed at a Howrah school; 40 pairs of shoes for orphanage girls in Kolkata; 400 sanitary napkin packs distributed at a Kolkata high school; a lift installed at a temple in Rajasthan; support for 200 women in Dubai labour camps; and education and treatment for a 12-year-old special-needs child.

Covid-19 — Daily Wage & Migrant Worker Relief

Howrah, Kolkata, Mumbai, Ajmer, Beawar

The foundation pledged INR 50 lakhs (~US$67,000) toward relief for daily wage earners and migrant workers in the first weeks of the pandemic. Trustee Sangeeta Maheshwari also created a 21-day Inner Growth during Covid-19 video series on Life A Spiritual Gym.

Taal Volcano Eruption Relief

Lipa, Batangas, Philippines

Taal Volcano erupted on 12 January 2020, displacing more than 20,000 people. The foundation contributed US$1,000 to a fundraiser that raised more than US$5,500. Funds bought and distributed 1,010 toiletry sets, 300 sleeping mats, 1,000 water bottles, 300 food packs, plus diapers, sanitary napkins, hygiene products and towels — all in reusable eco-friendly bags across five villages in Lipa, Batangas.

CRPF Soldiers in India

Pulwama, Jammu & Kashmir

Following the 14 February 2019 Pulwama attack — in which almost fifty paramilitary police died — the foundation donated INR 100,000 in support: INR 75,000 to Mr Bablu Santra (CRPF) and INR 25,000 to Bravehearts of CAPF.

Pondicherry Tsunami

Pondicherry, India

The 2004 tsunami devastated many coastlines including parts of India. The foundation raised funds to construct homes for displaced families in Pondicherry, with major contributions from Mittal Steel employees and L.N. Mittal.

Lift Construction at Nausar Mata Temple

Pushkar Valley, Ajmer, Rajasthan

A lift installed at a 1,300-year-old hilltop temple housing nine idols of Maa Durga — to ease the climb for devotees and connect them more readily with their faith and reverence.

Vatsalya Bhavan

Khatu, Sikar district, Rajasthan

Rebuilding Vatsalya — a Dharamshala (pilgrims' rest house) built around 1980 by the Banwari Lal Savitri Bai Charitable Trust. The foundation has pledged INR 1 crore toward the project.

3 programmes

Global Partnerships

Multiplying impact through trusted institutional partners — from the Thai Red Cross to the Lions Club to the Grassroots Business Fund.

Lions Club Partnership — 2024 to 2026

India

Beyond the Howrah Blood Bank, the foundation funds a range of Lions Club activities in India — including food for visually impaired children and cancer treatment for a child in 2025, refrigeration equipment, and a food distribution in January 2026.

Father Redemptorist Foundation & Thai Red Cross

Chon Buri, Thailand

Teaching and learning support for visually impaired individuals; children's home services; medicine and blood provision for monks, patients and people experiencing poverty. As reflected on this page: at Maheshwari Foundation, we believe in zero deprivation.

Grassroots Business Fund

Africa, Asia, Latin America

GBF strives to create a world where economic opportunity reaches everyone, growing viable businesses that generate sustainable earnings for people with low incomes across Africa, Asia and Latin America. GBF's High Impact Businesses have generated economic opportunities for over 1.3 million people and improved the lives of 5.2 million more. The foundation has invested US$100,000.