CHENNAI: “The totality of the expected corporate involvement in Collective Social Responsibility (CSR) is approximately Rs 20,000 crore. The central government has 60 ministries, and the budget of one department the ministry of rural development is Rs 1 lakh crore. And so, when the corporate sector asked us why we wanted them to get into CSR, we told them, we wanted them to spend their money their way, with their efficiency. They have the finest minds. They now see CSR as an opportunity,” said former secretary of public sector enterprises government of India Bhaskar Chatterjee, who was instrumental in framing and issuing the CSR guidelines for public sector enterprises.
At a forum on CSR and best practices of corporate partnerships, organised by Action Aid, in partnership with the Times Foundation, about 15 companies participated and took turns to discuss their own CSR initiatives and the challenges they faced.
Focusing on the opportunities for development, chief operating officer of Centre for Corporate Governance and Citizenship Manoj Chakravarti said, “CSR should not be used to counter and offset any negative impact of the company’s operations on the environment, community and society at large.”
“Times Foundation has partnered with developmental initiatives working towards making the citizens of India more employable through skills training.
This endeavor has been hugely beneficial for employers as well as job seekers. It also works on spiritual healing programmes for citizens to live life to the fullest and function fruitfully,” said branch head of The Times of India, Chennai, S Santhanagopal.
