SRK Knowledge Foundation presents Santokba Humanitarian Awards 2026. Across India there are individuals whose work transforms lives, strengthens communities, and creates lasting social impact. Today we are here to celebrate those change makers and the power of service that drives them. Hello and a very warm welcome to SRK Knowledge Foundation presents Santokba Humanitarian Awards. For years, the SRK Knowledge Foundation has worked to create meaningful impact through initiatives in education, healthcare, skill development, community welfare, and social empowerment. Guided by the belief that success carries with it a responsibility to give back, the foundation has remained committed to improving lives and creating opportunities for those who need them the most.
From humble beginnings in rural Gujarat to building Shree Ramkrishna Exports into a global diamond powerhouse, Govind Dholakia's journey has been guided by a belief in giving back. Over six decades, SRK Exports has grown into a valued revenue enterprise with more than 9,000 family members while setting global benchmarks as the world's first net zero certified natural diamond crafting company. Beyond diamonds, that spirit of service lives on through the SRK Knowledge Foundation, the group's philanthropic arm, which has touched over 8.3 million lives through initiatives across education, healthcare, and social development. Inspired by the compassion and values of his mother, Shrimati Santokba Govind Dholakia, he instituted the Santokba Humanitarian Awards to honor lives dedicated to service. Over two decades, the award has recognized icons including His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Ratan Tata, and Sudha Murty among others. To take a closer look at the values, vision, and leadership that have shaped this journey, joining us today is none other than Govind Dholakia, Founder and Chairman Emeritus of Shree Ramkrishna Exports and SRK Knowledge Foundation. Govind Kaka, as he is lovingly and respectfully called.
Govind Kaka, when you look back at this journey of your life—where you started and now so many people are connected with you—it must not have been easy. What are those milestones in this journey that you remember the most? Perhaps not because you celebrated them with great joy, but perhaps because at that point you felt, how will we move forward? But then something happened and you moved ahead.
Namaste, sister. You asked a very good question. You gave me a good chance to speak. I was born in a small village with a population of 700, the village of Dhuria, Dudhalara. There I was born into a farmer's family. As we say in the Kathiawari language, I was born in the home of a hardworking farmer. So mostly I lived in the fields. We were five brothers and two sisters; I am the fourth. So when there was a house with one room and one kitchen, nine people lived there—eating, drinking, sleeping, everything happened there, yet it was very comfortable. Now youngsters think it would be uncomfortable, but back then everything was comfortable. By God's grace, I only studied up to seventh standard. Because my elder brother came to Surat for diamond cutting. My name came up [to go], Surat's name came up, so I said, 'I have to take the exam for seventh grade, let me give it and then I'll come.' He said, 'There's no studying, so what's the use of exams?' So without giving the exam, I came to Surat with him. At that time, in diamond cutting and polishing, there were only about 200 workers in all of Surat. I was one of those 200. Today there are 10 lakh. So I saw this entire growth. I saw Surat grow too. When I came to Surat, its population was 3 lakh. Today it is 90 lakh, 38 times over—I saw all this growth. Today diamond cutting and its export was then 7 crores for the Indian government, for India; today it is 23 billion, two lakh crores. So I saw this whole world change. But I believe that Dongreji Maharaj, who came into my life, shaped my life according to his teachings. The sentences of Dongreji Maharaj are in my nature, in my conduct, in my speech. So according to him, my life has been shaped till today.
You are saying this with great humility and modesty. But it is certainly not an easy thing to build such a large empire at that time and reach there.
They say that philanthropy or social service or community service is in a person’s DNA. The richest person may not believe in giving, but a person who doesn’t have that much money, if he has that spirit, whatever he gets, he will pass it forward. And those who come up seeing such times—where there has been struggle—then you feel even more that you want to be a part of that community in some way and promote it. And you have done so many things: community development, education, health, skill building, and more is happening.
You have done so many things: community development, education, health, skill building, and more. What was that time when you felt that now I have to take this to a level where I have achieved enough and now I want to start a foundation? Because now it’s the era of CSR. People do 2%, 3% and step back. But your percentage is in double digits. So what was that moment when you felt that this foundation needs to be pushed a bit more?
Look, sister, most people have this question in their minds. When I go to motivational programs, everyone asks this question. But I never dreamt of a Mungeri Lal. So Dongreji Maharaj has a sentence: 'You past forget. Why? Because our past is not in our hands, forget it. You don’t worry for the future.' So don’t worry about the future, but improve the present. Improve the time that is in your hands now. And Dongreji Maharaj had another sentence: 'The one whose present is good, their future is also good.' So I kept moving forward and the caravan kept forming. I tell everyone: if we—I and a friend were talking—if 50 years ago God had appeared in our office and said, 'Son, ask for whatever you want,' even then, what we could not ask for, we have received today. Because if God had come back then, there was no TV, no mobile. If we had asked from God at that time, we would have been left without TV and mobile today. So God has given so much beyond our imagination. And Dongreji Maharaj had a saying: ' contentment in the present situation is true devotion.' So being happy in the situation we have today is devotion. This is my life.
Very good. These awards are named after Santokba. When you think about her and her values, what are the things that influence you the most?
It’s like this: my mother, whom we all call 'Ma'—back then we called her 'Ba' and father 'Dada'. So I learned mostly from Ba and Dada. Everyone learns because children do what their parents do for 20 years. So my Ba was an incarnation of generosity—so generous, so compassionate. And Dongreji Maharaj has a saying: 'There is a history of generosity, not of greed.' So my mother was the embodiment of generosity, so I learned generosity from her. And my father was very truthful—so truthful that he didn’t even know what a lie was. Once, when peanuts were ripe, a trader came to the village to buy peanuts. He took the peanuts. Later, my father said, 'There is some rejection in these peanuts; what price will you give for those?' The trader said, 'Uncle, you kept those aside. In the whole village, everyone mixes them in. You are very good, so I will take them at the same price; I will not reduce it.' That was his quality—he didn’t lie even to that extent. So I learned the lesson of truth from my father. The lesson of generosity, I learned from my mother. So my mother—once someone asked me, 'Govinda, how much do you earn?' I said, 'Ba, I don’t know what lakh or crore is bigger.' So I told her, 'How can I explain how much I earn?' Then I said, 'If I fill this room with hundred-rupee notes, that much I have earned.' She was so happy—'Oh, that’s great! My heart is satisfied, God.' She was so innocent; she didn’t know about lakhs and crores.
Today it has been 20 years of this award, and you have supported so many people. You have brought so many people’s stories to the forefront. How do you see this award? Because you were already working before, but when you started the award, there must have been a different satisfaction.
No, the award—when I went to my mother's place (Ba Dham), later we thought, 'How can I immortalize her name?' I thought about building a university, a school—so that in one village, city, state, her name would be illuminated. But to illuminate her name across the entire world, what to do? Then I thought, and my friend circle told me: 'If you start an award, if the award runs, her name will become famous worldwide. If it doesn’t run, it will survive on the basis of my mother's penance.' So 'human effort, God's grace'—if God's grace is there, it will succeed. With this thought, in 2006, we started the 'Santokba Manav Ratna Award'—the jewel among humans. We named it Manav Ratna (Human Jewel).
This year a new category has been introduced—that of social entrepreneurship—for people who are doing business in such a way that money is also being earned but the product, service, and the way of work are humanitarian, for those who live in your society. When this award was being discussed, what kind of discussion took place, and why did you think that entrepreneurs should also be brought into this field?
Brother, now is the era of startups. And the honorable Narendra Bhai also gives so much importance to startups. This is the first step of development. Among those doing startups, some have become successful—they have lakhs and crores; they can make five lakh crores. But the one who has just one rupee, how does he make a hundred? That is the importance of startups. So we should give some importance to these startup people too, and they should get more support. Seeing them, we asked, 'For the youth, the nation, and the world to be good'—that is the thought.
