Donation request – Truth or scam?

A man just came to the door. Said he was registering “everybody’s” name for polio. I told him Nisarga’s name. He said he wanted mine. Mine? What for? He handed me a register. It had a list of names of various women from our building with amounts next to them.

So I asked him, what were the amounts. He said they were donations for poor people to get polio. Now polio dose is free in India. They even monitor kids in each locality and physically come and verify if you have given or not and administer “home delivery” for free. So this donation drive for polio raised alarms.

I asked him what he meant by compulsory donations? He said he was taking names of everyone, and the donation amount could be whatever we wanted. But compulsory. WTF?

Pretending that Nisarga needed my attention, I came inside and tried to call cops. Line busy. Tried for quite a while. Line busy. Gave up, came out. Asked him for information about his organization. He gave me some laminated papers, which I promptly took photos of, with my mobile.

Donation request - Truth or scam? 1Shree Anath Bal Seva Ashram, run by Rashtriya Samajseva Bahu-uddeshya Sanstha in Nagpur – was the name on the laminated handout he showed me, along with a copy of their receipt. Both things anyone can print out and laminate. A Certificate of Registration he showed me was a crumpled piece of paper which looked more like a random printout than any official document, but I don’t know what official documents looked like.

Donation request - Truth or scam? 2Some organization in Nagpur, collecting money in Borivali for donations for polio vaccinations? Big time alarm.

He didn’t like me clicking pics. He asked me why? He will give me a receipt. I pretended to be a big shot social worker with the power to get him a big donation, but first I would have to verify the information. Pretending to call my “social work organization” I called the cops again. Again no go.

So I told him there must be some problem with the lines in my office and to return tomorrow. He said that would be a problem. He could come next month. I said fine, I would figure out if and how much I would donate then.

He left.

I immediately tried calling the number on that receipt, line busy.

So here I am, putting it up. Whether this was a genuine fund raising effort, or it was a scam, at least ten names from our building paid a minimum of hundred rupees, and it seems without asking any questions at all.

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14 thoughts on “Donation request – Truth or scam?”

  1. I am Vaibhav Meshram from Nagpur Maharashtra ..on date 19/10/2018 some people came to my home..in which 3 are men’s and 1 is lady…they look very professional with well dress..then they told me that they are from an orpahange house .named as “Samta Ashram” pravesh nagar Nagpur…they show me some Laminated doc..some paper cuttings On that doc there no Registration no. of their Organisation. while their I cards are valid upto only 20/10/2017 only….then I try the landline no. given on doc they have..but the no. is not reachable..also the Directors no.is not reachable ..so I take pic of all doc they ahowed to me by my mobile…but they refuse that…and Leave by saying some bad words…
    Guys they are totally fake…if you really wants to donate some amount or anything else then please go directly to any orphanage house and help them…

    Don’t trust on such fake people..

  2. I also face the situation today. I gave them some rupees. After they left i,I check the landline number they had on there certificates. Some guy took the phone and told it is from same Anath ashram . well I still not sure about them. Is any way to check there genuines. Is any way to check registration no. of their on Web. Is any guys can check this Ashram named Samata Anath Sewa Ashram,Pravesh Nagar,Koradi road,Nagpur.

  3. I live in sambalpur, odisha.One person named sidhhu …Nath came with receipt i card permission letter of SHREE ANATH SEWA ASHRAM NAGPUR he is a frud. this ashram is closed and not registered.be ware

  4. Shreesthi Mishra

    Hello Vidyut, I want to thank uou for putting this up, I’m a house wife staying in a remote place like Koraput in southern Odisha. Two people came asking money for some sewa ashram for orphans. While I kept questioning them and checking their certificates, I wasn’t convinced enough, that for an orphanage in nagpur you would come to some small city in Odisha collecting money. I googled the name of their ashram, and their name wasn’t enlisted in govt. Of India authorised list. They didn’t ask me any money and left in haste.

  5. the same ashram person came to my home today, when i checked on Justdial, got the info that the ashram has been closed down before. .

  6. Today, a man came to my Place at Silvassa, Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
    When i asked for ID Card, he showed me same and also shown me approval form signed by some police comissioner of Mumbai. when i asked this document is valid in Mumbai, he said no sir its valid in whole maharashtra. I said u are standing in Union Terriotery. He paniced, i asked please provide me website, i will donate online. he gave me just business card which mentioned same name of trust mentioned in this article.
    Its really hard to figure out, who is real and fake ??

  7. Haresh Raichura

    Charity is in heart of all of us. Some people misuse by creating 1) Completely false trusts 2) Partially false trust and also by creating 100% true trusts.

    In such 100% true trust, 70% amount is paid by way of commission to agents who collect charity by door to door visit. CEO of sich trust also get a fat salary.

    Moral, if you want to charity, go out, search right place where you want to do charity.

    Look also at other countries. There are good methods to channalise our instinct of charity.

  8. Haresh Raichura

    Charity is in heart of all of us. Some people misuse by creating 1) Completely false trusts 2) Partially false trust and also by creating 100% true trusts.

    In such 100% true trust, 70% amount is paid by way of commission to agents who collect charity by door to door visit. CEO of sich trust also get a fat salary.

    Moral, if you want to charity, go out, search right place where you want to do charity.

    Look also at other countries. There are good methods to channalise our instinct of charity.

  9. I’ve been shooing away such people from my house doors since ages (from childhood).

    Registering an NGO, then collecting funds in name of some dire cause is quite an easy and old business.
    I wonder if even police could do much as NGO perhaps can raise funds freely as long as they give receipts, and as I see in the pictures taken by you, in his defence he’ll claim to police that the funds are for orphans (polio was only in speech, not written).
    Though if some one has a lot of spare time he could probably get that conman behind bars, but a lot of headache!!

    P.S. I’m sorry to say but you live in quite cognitively deficient nieghbourhood. 

  10. I’ve been shooing away such people from my house doors since ages (from childhood).

    Registering an NGO, then collecting funds in name of some dire cause is quite an easy and old business.
    I wonder if even police could do much as NGO perhaps can raise funds freely as long as they give receipts, and as I see in the pictures taken by you, in his defence he’ll claim to police that the funds are for orphans (polio was only in speech, not written).
    Though if some one has a lot of spare time he could probably get that conman behind bars, but a lot of headache!!

    P.S. I’m sorry to say but you live in quite cognitively deficient nieghbourhood. 

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