Have you donatekarted yet?

Do you wish to give but unsure of the way to go forward? Enter Donatekart, an online platform where you can buy products for ‘campaigns’ run by NGOs, which, in turn, utilise the items you donate for t
Have you donatekarted yet?

HYDERABAD: In a country of 1.25 billion people, millions are in need of basic amenities like nutritious food, clothing, and shelter. Thinking of doing your bit for fellow human beings? Think Donatekart.
Donatekart is a crowdfunding platform where non-profit organisations list the products they need, and donors can buy these products online. Once people buy the products, Donatekart helps deliver them to NGOs, which in turn, provide it to the needy.

It is a first-of-its-kind platform which primarily focusses on product donation. The donor also gets frequent updates on the product utilisation. NGOs can run a campaign on the portal to raise any kind of products - be it groceries, utensils, stationery, blankets, medical equipment, etc. Founders Anil Kumar Reddy hails from Madanapalle of Chittor district in Andhra Pradesh, while Sandeep Sharma is from Kodad in Suryapet district of Telangana. Both graduated from NIT Nagpur in 2016.

Anil got the idea of creating Donatekart in December 2015, when he was in Chennai for flood relief activities with Goonj NGO. Operating out of a warehouse, the team unloaded, sorted and disseminated tonnes of material to local distribution groups. It was there that he saw several packages in Amazon and Flipkart cartons. Many people had purchased items online and had them shipped to the Goonj-run relief warehouse. It then struck him that though people had donated a lot of things in kind, rather than cash, there were many other items that were needed.

What if donors knew what to donate and in how much quantity? And thus was Donatekart born. After graduation, he and his partner Sandeep Sharma decided to forgo campus placements and dedicated their efforts towards their first entrepreneurial venture.  Since the launch in November 2016, 25 NGOs affiliated with Donatekart have raised `15 lakh worth of products. Currently, they run campaigns in Delhi, Pune, Hyderabad, Jammu, and Mumbai, with plans to expand to other cities in the near future. The initial financial push was given by their families.

Currently, the team is self-sustainable and is supported by Zone Startups India, an accelerator programme by Bombay Stock Exchange. The Donatekart team does a rigorous due diligence process before on-boarding any organisation. Even after the campaign gets completed, we make sure that the NGO gives frequent updates with photos / videos to the contributors on how the products are being utilised, says Anil.
“The process is transparent and donors believe this would lead to a lesser chance of misuse of funds,” says Srivyal Vuyyuri, Founder of Sphoorti Foundation. Our aim is to see an India where everyone contributes at least 2 percent of their income to a noble cause, says Anil. So, what are you waiting for?
Details: www.donatekart.com

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The New Indian Express
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