It felt right to register in Assam. Our founding programs took shape in the forest villages around Garbhanga, where girls were the last to be sent to school and the first to be pulled out of it. Assam is not simply where we operate; it is where we learned to listen before building. Anchoring Sneha Karma Foundation India here connects the organisation to the people and the place that shaped it.
With an Indian registration, we can contract locally, hire locally and work directly with families, schools and village leaders. Decisions that once travelled across time zones can now be made where the girls actually live. That proximity is not a convenience; it is the whole point.
Why an Indian entity helps us scale
Registration unlocks the practical machinery that a program needs to grow responsibly. It allows us to:
- Receive Indian donations directly, making it easy for individuals and companies in India to support the mission.
- Partner with Indian institutions, schools and companies under Indian legal and tax frameworks.
- Operate at scale — more girls enrolled, more training delivered, more villages reached — with local governance and oversight.
- Build local trust, because supporters can see a transparent, Indian-registered organisation accountable to Indian authorities.
80G provisional certification — March 24th, 2023
A registration is a beginning; credibility is what turns it into impact. On March 24th, 2023, Sneha Karma Foundation India received its 80G provisional certification. In practical terms, this means that donations made to Sneha Karma Foundation India are eligible for tax exemption for the donor under Indian law.
That single certification changes the conversation with our Indian supporters. Individuals can give with confidence, and companies looking to direct their CSR budgets can partner with us knowing their contributions are recognised under Indian tax rules. It removes a real barrier between goodwill and the girls who need it — and it signals that the organisation meets the standards Indian law sets for responsible non-profits.
The road to FCRA
With registration and 80G in place, our next milestone is FCRA — the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act registration that allows an Indian non-profit to receive foreign donations directly. Today, our supporters outside India give through Sneha Karma Foundation USA. FCRA approval would let Sneha Karma Foundation India receive international support directly, simplify our operations, and give us far greater flexibility to scale.
We are working towards it methodically: strengthening governance, documenting our programs, maintaining clean financials and ensuring we meet every requirement the process demands. It is painstaking work, but it is the responsible way to grow — and it is worth it.
What this unlocks for the girls we serve
Behind every certificate is a girl. An Indian entity and 80G certification are not milestones for their own sake — they are the rails that let us move faster and further. More girls enrolled in school and carried from the classroom to a career. More women trained in marketable skills. More artisans earning a dignified livelihood through our social enterprise. More villages where a girl is finally given the fair start she was denied.
The goal has not changed since the day the idea was born: to support underprivileged girls until they are independent, self-empowered, and able to stand on their own. What has changed is our ability to do it at scale, inside India, with the trust and the structures that make long-term work possible.
Looking ahead
Sneha Karma Foundation India being registered on January 31st, 2022, and receiving its 80G provisional certification on March 24th, 2023, are milestones we are proud of — but they are markers on a longer road. The next one is FCRA, and beyond that, a generation of girls whose futures look different because of work that is rooted, accountable and close to the ground.
Together with Sneha Karma Foundation USA and our volunteers around the world, this Indian chapter gives our mission real depth. Care, turned into action — now with roots in the soil where it matters most.
Sneha Karma Foundation India was officially registered on January 31st, 2022, in Assam. That registration — followed by 80G provisional certification on March 24th, 2023 — marks a turning point for our work in India.
A new chapter for our work in India
For years, Sneha Karma Foundation has served girls and women in India from a distance, channelling support through partners and volunteers. That work changed lives — but it also had limits. Scaling a mission from abroad is slow, and it separates you from the very ground where the change happens. To truly grow, we needed roots in India itself: a registered Indian entity, accountable to Indian law, able to receive Indian support and to operate directly in the communities we serve.
On January 31st, 2022, that became real. Sneha Karma Foundation India was officially registered in Assam — the state that has been home to our earliest work and where the first chapter of our story on the ground was written.
Registered in Assam — where our work began
It felt right to register in Assam. Our founding programs took shape in the forest villages around Garbhanga, where girls were the last to be sent to school and the first to be pulled out of it. Assam is not simply where we operate; it is where we learned to listen before building. Anchoring Sneha Karma Foundation India here connects the organisation to the people and the place that shaped it.
With an Indian registration, we can contract locally, hire locally and work directly with families, schools and village leaders. Decisions that once travelled across time zones can now be made where the girls actually live. That proximity is not a convenience; it is the whole point.
Why an Indian entity helps us scale
Registration unlocks the practical machinery that a program needs to grow responsibly. It allows us to:
- Receive Indian donations directly, making it easy for individuals and companies in India to support the mission.
- Partner with Indian institutions, schools and companies under Indian legal and tax frameworks.
- Operate at scale — more girls enrolled, more training delivered, more villages reached — with local governance and oversight.
- Build local trust, because supporters can see a transparent, Indian-registered organisation accountable to Indian authorities.
80G provisional certification — March 24th, 2023
A registration is a beginning; credibility is what turns it into impact. On March 24th, 2023, Sneha Karma Foundation India received its 80G provisional certification. In practical terms, this means that donations made to Sneha Karma Foundation India are eligible for tax exemption for the donor under Indian law.
That single certification changes the conversation with our Indian supporters. Individuals can give with confidence, and companies looking to direct their CSR budgets can partner with us knowing their contributions are recognised under Indian tax rules. It removes a real barrier between goodwill and the girls who need it — and it signals that the organisation meets the standards Indian law sets for responsible non-profits.
The road to FCRA
With registration and 80G in place, our next milestone is FCRA — the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act registration that allows an Indian non-profit to receive foreign donations directly. Today, our supporters outside India give through Sneha Karma Foundation USA. FCRA approval would let Sneha Karma Foundation India receive international support directly, simplify our operations, and give us far greater flexibility to scale.
We are working towards it methodically: strengthening governance, documenting our programs, maintaining clean financials and ensuring we meet every requirement the process demands. It is painstaking work, but it is the responsible way to grow — and it is worth it.
What this unlocks for the girls we serve
Behind every certificate is a girl. An Indian entity and 80G certification are not milestones for their own sake — they are the rails that let us move faster and further. More girls enrolled in school and carried from the classroom to a career. More women trained in marketable skills. More artisans earning a dignified livelihood through our social enterprise. More villages where a girl is finally given the fair start she was denied.
The goal has not changed since the day the idea was born: to support underprivileged girls until they are independent, self-empowered, and able to stand on their own. What has changed is our ability to do it at scale, inside India, with the trust and the structures that make long-term work possible.
Looking ahead
Sneha Karma Foundation India being registered on January 31st, 2022, and receiving its 80G provisional certification on March 24th, 2023, are milestones we are proud of — but they are markers on a longer road. The next one is FCRA, and beyond that, a generation of girls whose futures look different because of work that is rooted, accountable and close to the ground.
Together with Sneha Karma Foundation USA and our volunteers around the world, this Indian chapter gives our mission real depth. Care, turned into action — now with roots in the soil where it matters most.