Bandhan Bank limited (the ‘Bank’) is aware of its Corporate, Social and Environmental responsibilities and recognises that a good Corporate Social Responsibility (‘CSR’) policy leads to a better trusteeship of all stakeholders.
The CSR of the Bank is not just philanthropy, but it is a strong commitment to contribute to social and environmental growth and prosperity and is pivotal to its business sustainability.
Bandhan Bank has supported the afforestation initiatives and has contributed to the project of establishing a “Bio-shield” to save the mangroves in the Bharuch district of Gujarat.
Mangrove plantation of 67,540 saplings was carried out in 20 hectares in a stretch of 1 kilometer of coastline was done along with plantation of other medical plant species and fodder species, sequestering over 4,400 tonnes of CO2 annually to date in FY 2021-22.
The fodder bank was created to offset the biotic pressure from the mangrove area.
The project created 4,629 person-days of employment and benefited 9,123 beneficiaries with additional income generating avenues from fodder and medicinal plant harvesting.
Water Conservation
The water conservation initiative aims at water security and drought-proofing to some of the high moisture stressed regions of India, thereby providing a safety net to agriculture and livestock-based livelihoods. The initiatives facilitate participatory watershed management by empowering the communities to participate in the planning and implementation of local water resource development.
Measures, such as, building, reviving and maintaining water-harvesting structures, prioritisation and judicious use of water for every community member, crop planning and water-efficient farming, use of drought-resistant varieties, cultivation of high-value crop requiring less water, etc., creates a multiplier effect in drought-proofing and climate change adaptation measures and higher income generation.
The programme has supported the construction of 23 water harvesting structures with a storage capacity of over 120,000 kiloliters of water in two states, which not only provided drinking water to over 1,500 families but also supported participatory irrigation of various crops and helped in generating an income of more than Rs. 123 Lakh.
Also read: CSR: Bandhan Bank spends over Rs. 78 Cr on social development in FY 2021-22 – India CSR
