The Maharashtra CSR Summit was organised by India CSR and FUEL attended by 300 Companies, Corporate foundations, NGOs, and developmental agencies working in Maharashtra.
MUMBAI (India CSR): Senior BJP Leader and MLA Pravin Darekar said that poor, tribal and underprivileged people should get benefit from CSR fund. Development projects should be run for the poor, tribal and underprivileged people from CSR funds.
Addressing the Maharashtra CSR Summit on Wednesday organised by India CSR in Mumbai, he said that his government is committed to promoting CSR in Maharashtra. He said that the necessary steps will be taken so that more and more companies come forward to do CSR programs in Maharashtra. The amount of CSR will be used for rural development, tribal development and welfare of the deprived sections only then it has significance. He appreciated the efforts of India CSR founder Rusen Kumar for promoting CSR in Maharashtra. Praveen Darekar graced the occasion as a chief guest.
Kishore Dharia, Founder President of Hirwal Pratishthan and Vice President – of Vanarai Foundation also a Member of the World Water Council said that our country is the first country in the whole world that has made a provision to use the profits of the company in the service of society. The concept of CSR is very important to us. It will play an important role in bringing about social change and furthering social development.
Describing the importance of topics of the conference, he said that such conferences help in understanding social issues and finding solutions for them. The Maharashtra CSR Conference is a commendable effort in this direction.
Ketan Deshpande, Chairman and CEO, FUEL while addressing the inaugural session said that skill development under CSR should be given top priority to companies under CSR programmes. Our country has a large number of youths, we have to give them skills, only then they will be able to contribute to society.
He said that his organization FUEL has set a record by providing skill development to thousands of youths. To give further impetus to this work, efforts are being made to establish Skill University. He said that for the establishment of Skill University, we will need ease in provisions like the need for land and buildings, etc. He exhorted that every company should include skill development work in its CSR agenda.
Rusen Kumar, Founder – India CSR, Convenor – Maharashtra CSR Summit & Awards said that the Maharashtra CSR Summit is an attempt to bring together all key stakeholders of the CSR and Social Development sector of Maharashtra in the post-COVID-19 era. This conference is an effort to make a pioneering contribution in giving momentum and direction to the programs of social development in the state.
The Maharashtra CSR Summit had themed around ‘Leveraging CSR to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Maharashtra” and featured visionary thought leaders of the CSR and Social Development Sector and Govt. officials. The Summit organised by India CSR with the support of FUEL NGO, Pune which provides skill development training. The Summit aimed at putting forth the CSR agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for Maharashtra state. The Summit offered a shared platform for political visionaries, business leaders and development sector leaders to share their ideas and vision for the development of the state. Over 300 CSR, NGO and Govt. officials participated in the daylong forum. Over 20 people, organisations and CSR organizations were honored for their social and CSR good practices.
Mayank Gandhi, Renowned Social Reformer and Agriculturist provided detailed information about the work being done for agriculture and rural development. He said that the development programs initiated by him have brought a constructive change in the lives of thousands of farmers. He said that agriculture is the basis of rural life. Every effort should be made for the prosperity of agriculture.
Dr. Ujjwalkumar Chavhan, IRS, Deputy Director, Enforcement Directorate (ED) gave detailed information about its special social program – Mission 500 crore litters water reservoir. He informed that the water conservation initiative was started in Dhamangaon village of Jalgaon in 2017. In this initiative, farmers came together, planned and contributed to diesel expenses for making tanks and check dams by Poclain and JCB machines made available by NGOs. So far, 34 villages in 4 districts created reservoirs of 208 crore litters. Also planted 45000 trees and repaired farm roads of 20KM.
Atul Patne IAS, Commissioner, Fisheries Department gave detailed information about commercial and social opportunities in fish farming. He said that Maharashtra has immense potential for fish farming. The fisheries sector has a unique potential to generate employment.
Rahul More, Dy. Commissioner (Child welfare), Commissioner office Women and Child Development gave information about the development projects. He said that his department is ready to take up the work under the CSR project.
Ravi Boratkar, President – MEDC; Chairman Central India Central Multipurpose Consumer Co.Op. Society; Satish Jha, Chairman, Ashray Foundation; Ketan Deshpande, Chairman and CEO, FUEL; Dr. Sanjay Gandhi, Vice President – Pune Management Association and CMD – Aspire Knowledge & Skills India; Sandip Ghuge, President, Namo Cine TV Nirmatta Association; Anurag Pratap, Corporate Social Responsibility Leader, Capgemini India; Nitin J Naik, Founder, Synergy Connect Data Innovations Pvt. Ltd.; D Sreenivas Rao, Head of Strategic Partnerships & Resource Mobilization, Bharat Rural Livelihoods Foundation (BRLF); Dr. Duru Shah, Chairperson, Metropolis Foundation; Swati Saxena, India Head (Growth & Strategy), Arogya World; Anshu Taneja, Vice President and Managing Director, India, VisionSpring; Dr. Khaja Khan, MBBS, PGDS, Sonologist and President of an NGO; Preetika Venkatakrishnan, Educator, and Senior Vice President, Karadi Path Education Company; Arvind Bali, CEO, Telecom Sector Skill Council (TSSC); Arun Mehra, CEO, Edufront Foundation; Roma Balwani, CEO, Indian Deaf Cricket Association; Ganesh Jaywanti Sodaye, Head CSR – Tata Power, Trombay Power Plant (Mumbai); Dominic Dsouza, COO, Essar Foundation; Trimbak Dhengale-Patil, Chief Executive Officer, Solapur City Development, Corporation Ltd; Abhay Kantak, Director – Urban, CRISIL Risk and Infrastructure Solutions Limited; Prerana Langa, Chief Executive Officer, Aga Khan Agency for Habitat talked at the Summit.
The state-level forum was supported by various like-minded organizations, particularly those working in Maharashtra.
Also Read: Maharashtra CSR Awards: an Honour for social development organisations and leaders – India CSR
