The Hunger Project India

What The Hunger Project India does

The Hunger Project India (THP India) is a non-profit strategic organisation founded in 2000 (with programme roots in the 73rd Constitutional Amendment of 1992) that empowers elected women representatives (EWRs) in gram panchayats and adolescent girls across six Indian states — Bihar, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand. The organisation is headquartered in New Delhi with state offices in Bangalore, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Jaipur, and Haldwani, and reports a national-office staff complement of 21. Its core portfolio comprises four interconnected programmes: (1) Women's Leadership Initiatives building capacities of EWRs; (2) Access to Entitlements ensuring last-mile delivery of government social security schemes; (3) the Adolescent Girls' Programme delivered through Sukanya Clubs (Bihar) and Kishori Samuhs (Karnataka); and (4) Enhancing Nutrition Outcomes interventions. Supporting structures include the Mahila Adhikar Samukhya women's collectives in Odisha, the Jagruk Manch platform, and the SUGRAMA state-level federation of elected women in Karnataka, with impact documented through photo essays, animation films on citizenship and rights, and documentaries such as 'When Mountains Move'.

THP India operates a community-led, non-technological model rather than a software or platform business; it has no proprietary technology stack, API, or app, and programme delivery is executed through field staff, master trainers (several with 30+ years of grassroots experience), and partner organisations. Cumulative reach since inception is approximately 200,000 women leaders, with 2024 alone seeing 4,714,457 people reached across 5,558 villages, 83,603 beneficiaries linked to social security schemes (MGNREGA, pensions, housing, ration cards), 12,249 children enrolled in school, and 7,000 kitchen gardens established.

The business model is donation-driven: THP India accepts individual contributions (minimum INR 250 for Indian donors, INR 2500 for foreign donors) eligible for a 50% tax benefit under Section 80G, supplemented by corporate CSR partnerships (Karnataka Bank, MRPL, GAIL Gas) and international institutional funding from UNDP, UN Women, UNFPA, BMZ, Royal Norwegian Embassy, Canada Fund for Local Initiatives, New Zealand High Commission, Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiatives, Dasra, Mariwala Charity Trust, Forum Syd, Ribbink Van Den Hoek Foundation, and American Jewish World Service. The organisation is governed by a Governing Council chaired by Pari Jhaveri and holds active 12AA, 80G, and FCRA registrations (FCRA valid through September 30, 2029), and is part of The Hunger Project global network without a separate parent entity.

Name

The Hunger Project India

Legal name

The Hunger Project India

Website

https://thpindia.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Hunger Project India is a non-profit organisation founded in 2000 that empowers elected women representatives in gram panchayats and adolescent girls across six Indian states through leadership training, access to government entitlements, and nutrition programmes, funded by individual donations, corporate CSR, and international institutional grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rural Community Development Non-Profit Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (813410), Community Food Services (624210), Social Advocacy Organizations (81331)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGABAA

Rural Livelihoods & Economic Empowerment

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/International Development & Poverty Alleviation

SECONDARYBPADAEAG

Agriculture, Food Security & Nutrition Technical Assistance

Business & Public Services/International Organizations & Development/International Development & Technical Assistance

Keywords

• Rural community development
• Women's leadership programmes
• Local governance capacity building
• Social empowerment non-profit
• Government entitlements facilitation

Headquarters

HQ city

New Delhi

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices6 records

Markets served

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: THP India generates revenue through donations from individuals, corporations, and institutional donors. The organization accepts donations via its website with options for one-time and recurring contributions, supports corporate CSR partnerships, and receives funding from international donors and foundations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Hunger Project India is a non-profit that delivers grassroots empowerment programmes aimed at strengthening women's leadership in gram panchayats, supporting adolescent girls through Sukanya Clubs and Kishori Samuhs, facilitating last-mile delivery of government social security schemes to marginalised communities, and improving nutrition outcomes. It operates through direct field implementation in six Indian states, building collective platforms such as Mahila Adhikar Samukhya, Jagruk Manch, and the SUGRAMA federation, and is funded by donations from individuals, corporates, philanthropic foundations, foreign governments, and UN agencies.

Product overview

The Hunger Project India operates as a non-profit organization offering a portfolio of interconnected grassroots empowerment programmes rather than a unified technology product. The core offerings consist of: (1) Women's Leadership Initiatives that build capacities and leadership skills of elected women representatives in gram panchayats; (2) the Adolescent Girls' Programme that empowers girls through Sukanya Clubs and Kishori Samuhs; (3) Access to Entitlements Programme ensuring last-mile delivery of government social security schemes; and (4) the Enhancing Nutrition Outcomes intervention. Supporting structures include Mahila Adhikar Samukhya (MAS) collectives in Odisha, Jagruk Manch women's collectives, and the SUGRAMA federation in Karnataka. The organization also produces educational resources including animation films on citizenship and rights, and photo essay/video documentation of impact. All programmes are rooted in principles of gender equity, social justice, inclusion, collaboration, accountability, and decentralisation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Women's Leadership Initiatives A core programme focused on developing the capacities and leadership skills of women in local governance (panchayats), rooted in principles of gender equity, social justice, inclusion, collaboration, accountability, and decentralisation. It serves elected women representatives in gram panchayats across six Indian states.
• Access to Entitlements Programme A core programme that ensures last-mile delivery of government social security schemes to vulnerable and marginalised communities, supporting women leaders to drive development and secure welfare benefits such as MGNREGA employment, pensions, housing, and ration cards.
• Adolescent Girls' Programme (Sukanya Clubs and Kishori Samuhs) A core programme that empowers adolescent girls with leadership skills and life skills tools to challenge gender and social discriminatory practices and norms, supporting active citizenship and access to local government services. It is implemented through Sukanya Clubs in Bihar and Kishori Samuhs in Karnataka.
• Enhancing Nutrition Outcomes Intervention A core programme engaging with vulnerable households and institutional mechanisms at the panchayat level to strengthen their role in nutrition-related services, bridging gaps between citizens and their rights and entitlements. It supports activities such as setting up kitchen gardens to enhance community nutrition.

Quantifiable outcome

• 200,000 women leaders engaged over 20 years
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Oxfam India: Large Indian non-profit working on gender justice, governance, and reducing inequality. Overlaps significantly with THP India's panchayati raj and women's leadership focus but operates at much greater scale and across more states, often funding smaller NGOs in this space.
• ActionAid India: Federated international NGO operating across India on women's rights, governance, and social exclusion. Engages with panchayati raj institutions and women's collectives in multiple states, making it a broader but thematically aligned incumbent.

Direct peers

• PRADAN (Professional Assistance for Development Action): Promotes livelihoods and self-help groups among rural poor women in multiple Indian states. Shares THP India's grassroots mobilization model, focus on women's collectives, and engagement with government schemes (MGNREGA, NRLM), making it a directly comparable rural development peer.
• Swayam Shikshan Prayog (SSP): Mumbai-based NGO empowering rural women in Maharashtra and other states through self-help groups, leadership training, and disaster resilience. Comparable in scale, methodology (women-led community development), and funding model (international + domestic donors).
• Jagori Rural Charitable Trust: Works on women's empowerment, gender justice, and community mobilization in rural Himachal Pradesh and similar geographies, with comparable theory of change around women's collectives and engagement with local governance.
• Mahila Samakhya (Government of India programme): Government programme for women's equality and education through empowerment of rural women, with parallel focus on collective action at village level. Operates across many of the same Indian states and targets a similar marginalized rural women demographic, making it a close thematic peer.
• Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA): India's largest women's empowerment organization with a similar focus on rural women, self-reliance, and access to entitlements, though anchored in livelihoods/trade unionism rather than panchayati raj. Comparable in scale of membership (millions of women) and geographic footprint across multiple Indian states.

Emerging players

• National Foundation for India: Indian grantmaking foundation that funds grassroots NGOs in women's empowerment, governance, and rural livelihoods. Acts as both peer and potential funder of THP India's programmes; comparable footprint of NGO support across India.
• Samaj Pragati Sahayog (SPS): Indian non-profit working on livelihoods, water security, and women's self-help groups in central India (Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan), with comparable theory of change around community-led rural development and government entitlement access.
• Mahiti Trust: Bengaluru-based NGO building women leaders in panchayats across Karnataka, with strong overlap on EWR capacity building, government scheme linkages, and adolescent girls' empowerment, making it a closely comparable state-level peer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@TheHungerProjectIndia
• Instagraminstagram.com/thehungerprojectindia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-hunger-project-india

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about The Hunger Project India