It has reported that among the 100 largest listed Indian origin companies by market capitalisation, or N100, compliance with the requirements of corporate social responsibility is at 92 per cent or higher on 17 of the 23 parameters, said a new survey by KPMG.
The biggest shortfalls relate to treatment of administrative or overhead expenses. On CSR expenditure, 76 per cent of the companies report spending at least 2 per cent of profits, up from 38 per cent in 2014-15, with a notably stronger performance by the non-PSU (public sector unit) companies in 2018-19, said the survey.
The amount reported as spent was Rs 8,691 crore in 2018-19, up from Rs 5,115 crore in 2014-15, said the report.
Disclosure of the amount spent has increased from 30 per cent in 2014-15 to 99 per cent in 2018-19, so only one company in the N100 is failing to disclose, it added.
Education and health are receiving the most attention, with 60 per cent of the CSR expenditure, it added.
“While the overall CSR spending is increasing, it is also heartening to observe the increase in number of companies going beyond the 2 per cent mandate and even companies who are not required to spend allocating budgets for CSR and spending,” Santhosh Jayaram, Partner and Head, Sustainability and CSR Advisory at KPMG in India, said in a statement.
“The overall governance indicators around CSR have shown a steady improvement in the last 5 years. The indicators representing the functioning of the CSR committee, the diversity in CSR committee and the improvement in monitoring and evaluation are showcasing this,” Jayaram added.
The “India CSR Reporting Survey 2019” noted a 325 per cent increase in the number of companies that have disclosed details of outreach in annual reports.
With Section 135 of the Companies Act of 2013, India embarked on a bold experiment in mandating Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for large companies.
As per the Act, which came into effect from April 1, 2014 companies with a net worth of Rs 500 crore or more, or a turnover of Rs. 100 crore or more, or a net profit of Rs 5 crore or more during the immediately preceding financial year are required to spend 2 per cent of their profits on CSR programmes.
