CHENNAI: Donations from abroad for NGOs in Tamil Nadu have dropped by 90%, pushing the state to fourth in the country in attracting funding under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA). This has adversely impacted activities of many groups largely dependent on such contributions, say activists.

TN has the most number of NGOs and associations registered under the FCRA in the country and 3,262 of the 6,485 NGOs eligible to receive funds are currently active.

Amnesty International’s decision to suspend its operations in India after its bank accounts were frozen last month is perhaps the result of yet another step of the Indian government’s methodical silencing of critics and human rights groups. Equally, it ....

...... People’s Watch and Henri Tiphagne have been hounded, as has activist Teesta Setalvad and her organisation. But it is the smaller ones that are unsung and unheard.