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May 5, 2025
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Corporate Collaborations Can Aid Health Scenario

By
Neha Bilandani
-

Today, the Indian government spends only about one percent of its GDP on healthcare, which is among the lowest globally for any country. Along with building highways, firing up our power plants and ensuring there is a roof over every Indian’s head, there is a need to focus on healthcare in the country.

According to the report released by Nathealth-PwC, the Out of pocket expenditure (OOPE) constitutes about 62.4% of all health expenses, a major drawback in a country like India where a large segment of the population is poor.

India still accounts for 16% of the global share of maternal deaths and 27% of global newborn deaths. Deaths continue to occur due to communicable diseases, with 22% of global TB incidence in our country.

To bridge the infrastructure gap, India will need increased participation from the private sector and for these traditional modes of healthcare funding will need to be supplemented by innovative modes funding to improve healthcare investments.

The report recommends four scaling innovative modes which should be introduced for funding Indian healthcare. These include fund of funds such as pension funds, investment route through PPP, long term debt. Report largely supports financing through pension funds which may provide access to a large pool of money. It also suggested funding through business trust entity like real estate investment trusts along with bilateral investment treaties.

It further examines the key challenges the healthcare industry is facing and the opportunities with which Indian healthcare system can overcome these challenges. “With a 22% shortage of primary health centres (PHCs) and 32% shortage of community health centres (CHCs), it is estimated that 50% of beneficiaries travel more than 100 km to access quality care. India has only 1.1 beds per 1,000 population in India compared to the world average of 2.7. Most physicians are located in urban areas, resulting in significant access issues in the rural regions,” the report read.

We need to promote quality of care with a focus on emerging diseases and invest in preventive healthcare. In turn increase access and financial protection, free drugs, free diagnostics and free emergency care services at all public hospitals. Most importantly, private sector collaboration to provide financial and non-financial incentives to encourage participation.

To meet India’s escalating healthcare needs; both the public and private sector will have to join hands to build infrastructure and the skill sets required to deliver care. This means that conventional modes of healthcare funding will need to be aided by innovative modes of funding to improve healthcare investments.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Nepalese Enterprises Have To Spend 1% Of Profit In Social Causes

By
The CSR Journal
-

Nepalese government will soon start implementing the provision of newly introduced Industrial Enterprise Act that the industries need to allocate at least 1% of their annual profit for social welfare.

Clause 48 per the Industrial Enterprise Act 2016 states, big or medium scale enterprises as well as small enterprises having annual turnover over 150 million Nepalese Rupee (1.45 million U.S. dollar/9 crore 35 lakhs INR) have to allocate at least 1% of their annual profit for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) purpose. The allocated amount should be spent in the specific projects as incorporated in annual program for CSR.

Nepal’s Industry Minister Nabindra Raj Joshi announced on Friday that the state-owned Hetauda Cement Industry and Udayapur Cement Industry would allocate 1.45 U.S. dollars and 1.94 U.S. dollars per 100 sacks respectively.

“The announcement will be implemented from April 16,” he said.

Nepalese Industry Ministry said that the collected amount from these two industries would be spent in health, education and nutrition of disadvantaged children.

Nepal’s enterprises have been spending certain amount in social causes. But, it is the first time that legal provision has been made ensuring that enterprises must spend certain amount of their profits for social causes.

(Asia&Pacific Edition)

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Focus Of Values Cannot Be Overstated: Gul Panag, Actress & Social Activist

By
Neha Bilandani
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Gul Panag runs the Colonel Shamsher Singh Foundation, an NGO that works towards a variety of causes including gender equality, education and disaster management. It was founded seven years ago. In conversation with The CSR Journal, she highlights that there is a vast chasm between what people have and what they should have. On a more social plane, she augments the need for the education system to be looked at aggressively, without which the value system cannot be formed.

Thank you for watching the interview until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Raising Funds Through The Strength And Power Of A Sport

By
Neha Bilandani
-

The 14th edition of Asia’s distance running event, the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon (SCMM) once again captivated the country with its belief, courage, and passion. Since inception, the marathon has been empowering lives by encouraging citizens to take a step in support of the less fortunate.

Money for charity in aid  was raised for multiple causes including health care, education, disability, underprivileged communities, women empowerment, animal welfare, environment conservation, grassroots sports development, elderly care, gender equality, social, civic, and community development  through the efforts of its philanthropy partner, United Way India. Rs 32.93 crores were raised for the same.

“This time our theme for the charity aspect has been “Run exceptional,” showcasing the outstanding efforts by people who have chosen to make their ‘run exceptional’ by raising funds for worthy causes. As the official philanthropy partner, the responses we have got from the corporate sector have been overwhelming as always. Each and every one of these amazing individuals has gone beyond dreaming about change by actively working towards it,” said Jayanti Shukla, Executive Director, United Way Mumbai.

The charity figures have risen steadily from Rs 1.44 crores in 2004 to Rs 32.93 crores in 2017.  The top three NGOs to raise funds were Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care, Isha Vidya and Amar Seva Sangam, which raised over Rs 6.58 crores collectively.

Change Icons, who are considered crusaders for social change were Mihir Doshi, husband-wife duo Sankara Raman &Ramani Sankara Raman, Villy Doctor, Abhay Jasani and Anand Mahindra have collectively raised over Rs 4.13 crores.

The Younger Leaders category was introduced in 2016 with an aim to encourage young philanthropists and instill the act of giving from an early age. This year, over 136 young leaders below the age of 21 years including 24 who were elevated to Change Runner, raised Rs 1.97 crores for their respective NGOs. 169 Change Runners raised over Rs 11.92 crores.

In his concluding remarks, Vivek B Singh, Joint Managing Director, Procam International said, “In the last 14 years, the marathon has gone from a dream to one of India’s largest charity drives, and this effort continues to grow year after year. It inspires individuals to be the change they want to see in the world and make an impact, no matter how big or small. With the curtain drawing on the 2017 edition, we are grateful for all the support, faith and contribution to this sporting and social revolution.”

Procam’s distance running events have emerged as the largest cause agnostic fundraising platforms in the country. Since 2004, they have brought to light causes of more than 700 NGOs, raising over Rs 261 crores in charity.

Amongst the corporate, the highest fundraising company was Credit Suisse Securities (India) followed by Kotak Mahindra Bank and Godrej and Boyce.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Talk Now- Better Late Than Never

By
Neha Bilandani
-

World Health Day is an annual reminder, an alarm set by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to remind the world of both the increasing health burden and attention required for public health. This year, 7th April, is a day that marks 68 years of the WHO’s effort in preventing, arresting, and reporting on public health issues and incidents globally, the spotlight is on depression.

The quiet temperament of depression is often the reason that it goes unnoticed till it’s too late. Keshav Desiraju, Former Union Health Secretary and Chairperson of the Population Foundation of India said, “Mental health cannot be divorced from physical health – in fact people suffering from major depression have a 40 – 60% chance of dying prematurely due to physical health problems that are left unattended or suicide. Suicide is the second most common cause of death among young people worldwide. The Mental Health Care Act, 2017 that has just been passed in the Indian parliament is a significant step towards destigmatising psychological disorders, recognising an attempt at suicide as an act committed under severe mental stress.”  Population Foundation of India (PFI) is an NGO, which promotes and advocates for the effective formulation and implementation of gender sensitive population, health and development strategies and policies.

Depression is also unbiased about who suffers. In a study examining the prevalence of depression in adolescent students of a public school, three to nine per cent of teenagers met the criteria for depression at any one time. Towards the end of adolescence, as many as 20% of teenagers report a lifetime prevalence of depression.

“Adolescence entails a time of change and acclimatisation before young people can settle into adulthood and participate in society to their fullest potential. Physical changes can adversely impact the psychological well-being of a child if they are not given adequate guidance. To support this work, the Saathiya Kit includes games, films and materials for Saathiyas – a new, revamped league of adolescent peer facilitators. We want our girls and boys to know about health, nutrition, gender, sexuality, substance misuse and many other issues covered in the kit, which are fundamental for their empowerment and development. They need to know, for example, that it is fine for boys too cry and for girls to play outdoors” said Diego Palacios, UNFPA Country Representative for India.

In India, approval of the Mental Health Care Bill in the parliament has steered the debate in a positive direction. Psychiatrist and researcher Dr Vikram Patel said, “The passage of the Mental Health Care Bill by the Lok Sabha is a momentous milestone in the struggle for the realisation of the rights of people with mental health problems in India to a life with dignity and access to community based care. Now, the responsibility falls upon all concerned sectors in the government, health professional communities and civil society, to join hands towards converting the high ideals of the Act into reality.”

Mental health is integral to the health and well-being of an individual as defined in the Constitution of the WHO – “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely in the absence of disease or infirmity.” WHO also recognises the damage caused by the silence that surrounds depression and mental illness, and raises the slogan ‘Depression: Let’s Talk’ to mark the day. Albeit a little late, it’s now time to talk.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Young Girls Join School Of Justice To Prosecute Perpetrators of Prostitution

By
Pooja Domadia
-

An estimate of 1.2 million children are pushed into the abyss of forced prostitution in India, which means that India has the largest amount of child prostitutes in the world. Out of those 1.2 million cases, only 55 legal cases led to convictions in 2015.

To counter this impunity, ‘School of Justice’ was launched on Thursday by the Free a Girl Movement, a coalition of local organisations dedicated to rescue girls from forced prostitution. The school will educate young girls who were victims of sex trafficking to become lawyers and prosecutors to ensure justice for them and other victims like them.

Their aim is to fight the injustice of child prostitution by educating girls rescued from child prostitution to become lawyers and prosecutors with the power to prosecute the criminals that once owned them.

The school is both a school and an education programme for girls from all school levels to offer the support, tuition and mentoring that they need to reach university level. Once at that level, they will study to get to their Bachelors in Law, to ultimately persuade the government to become public prosecutors with the power and determination to leverage India’s legal system to seek justice.

“Around 2004-05, we had rescued some girls from the trap of sex traffickers. Their cases are yet ongoing. Their perpetrators are still roaming free and further continuing the crimes. It is important to punish them to ensure this heinous crime is eradicated,” said Tapoti Bhowmick, Secretary, Sanlaap, an organisation involved in rescue and rehabilitation of sex trafficking victims.

“The School for Justice is an ambitious initiative – the class of 2017 is just the first step in our plan. We want to cultivate a culture that punishes the criminals behind child prostitution by educating and empowering the victims to become lawyers with the legal power to seek justice. Ultimately we want governmental support to seek law reforms to make a positive change in our country in this regard” said Francis Gracias, CEO & Spokesperson, Free a Girl Movement.

In India, many underage girls end up working in brothels against their will; some are barely 7 years of age. They are tortured until they agree to cooperate with the offender. These victims are forced to have sex, sometimes with 20 different men each day.

Bollywood actor and activist Mallika Sherawat, who is an ambassador of Free a Girl Movement, has extended her full support and commitment for The School for Justice.

“Underage girls forced into prostitution is a problem that we simply can’t ignore any longer. It is an organised and systematic rape of young girls, happening on a large scale. Girls, sometimes as young as 7 or 8 years, are forced into this life. By freeing the girls, we’re not changing the system that allows this crime to happen. To break this cycle, we will attack a key factor: the fact that the perpetrators are not being punished. Lack of action allows them to continue with their crimes. I ask you to support the School for Justice to help the victims turn their anger at this injustice into a force for good and a furious determination to put everyone involved in child prostitution behind bars.” said Mallika Sherawat, actor and ambassador of Free a Girl Movement.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Karnataka Struggles For CSR Funding To Save Forests

By
The CSR Journal
-

What is the likelihood of seeing a company board or hoarding in the middle of a lush forest? And even if there was one, it is unlikely that tourists hoping to catch a glimpse of a tiger will give it any attention.

Perhaps, it is this lack of visibility that has become the biggest barrier in the Karnataka Forest Department’s outreach to corporates to take up forest protection measures under the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

It was in 2014 that the initiative started, and so far around Rs 35 crore has been spent by corporates on forests, said Vinay Luthra, Chairman of Karnataka Ecotourism Development Board (KEDB), which organised its third annual day-long workshop on CSR funding.

“This contribution has come in the form of kind: vehicles, cameras and other equipment,” he said.

However, this contribution has come from barely 20 companies — a mixture of NGOs and corporates, including mining firms. This is not just a fraction of the companies in the State, but also represents a fraction of the over Rs 500 crore spent annually under CSR in Karnataka.

This also falls short of the department’s expectations. The Forest Department presented to the small gathering of corporates their “charter of desirables”, which comprises projects worth more than Rs 730 crore.

The bulk of this comes from the purchase of private lands close to forest blocks, construction of underpasses to reduce road kills, solar-powered borewells to alleviate water crisis in tiger reserves, and to even purchasing buses to help children travel safely to their school in areas witnessing high human-elephant conflict.

While CSR mandates 2% spending of profit, G.S. Sugur, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), said the forests received a marginal per cent of this money.

A recent CRISIL report on CSR spending in 2016, showed that less than 9% of the total CSR funds went into environment, and even lesser in rural areas. “Corporates would rather spend in urban areas where they get better visibility, than in remote forests. Moreover, most would also like to spend within their own districts — this would mean forests of Western Ghats, where there are hardly any big industries nearby, do not get CSR spending,” said Mr. Luthra, who said corporates enrolled currently were primarily due to the passion for wildlife among their promoters.

He believed it was important to get corporates on board, not just for monetary contributions, but to inculcate a long-term “sense of responsibility” that could influence policy-making.

(The Hindu)

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Averting The ‘Smoke On Water’

By
Anirban Ghosh, CSO, Mahindra Group
-

India is on the way to become very highly urbanised with 60% of its population expected to live in cities by 2050. But urbanisation is not a new story in India. Bengaluru, India’s Silicon Valley, has gone from being a “City of Lakes” and a “Garden City” to becoming an urban nightmare. A grim omen for the future of Indian cities.

Once upon a time Bengaluru had 2000 lakes. The government of Karnataka website says there were 262 lakes in 1960. Today the number is down to 81 as per the same website. Its biggest lake, Bellandur, catches fire occasionally. Three instances have happened already with the most recent ‘smoke on the water’ episode occurring in February 2017. Dense smoke emerged from the middle of the lake, flames appeared soon afterwards. The smoke was so dense that it took the fire department hours to locate the source of the fire and get access to the spot, according to news reports. Why did this happen?

Experts say that a lethal mix of factors created a situation that required the slightest of triggers for the lake to go up in flames. Untreated effluents pour into the waters from many industries and homes on its banks. Illegal waste disposal takes place on a large scale and invasive weeds cover large bands of the lake in a thick green canopy. This is a recipe for disaster and officials believe that residents near the lake set the garbage on fire just as people do to garbage in other places. Whether the fire is spontaneous or a case of arson, the fact remains that the lake is terribly polluted.

According to a study by the Indian Institute of Science (IISC), Bengaluru, rapid urbanisation and expansion between 1973 and 2016 caused a 1005% increase in paved surfaces and decline of 88% in the city’s vegetation, while another study showed that water bodies declined by 85% between 2000 and 2014 and concluded that Bengaluru will be “unliveable” by 2025. Unless we do something about it.

The Bellandur lake is in the jurisdiction of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), or the Municipal Corporation in the city, and the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), the custodian of the water body. The BDA feels that there is no point in restoring the lake if sewage water is not stopped from entering the lake. The responsibility of diverting sewage water lies with the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB). A recipe that has so far spelt disaster.

Relocating residents and industries from around the lake could be an impossible proposition. Getting them to use the lake responsibly may be asking for too much given the current experience. Making the waters of the lake the sole source of fresh water for them and therefore getting them to ensure that the lake remains clean could be a feasible solution in the best spirit of participatory governance.

But the lake and its stakeholders will not suddenly become amenable to this form of radical innovation in urban administration. A major project will need to be done to rejuvenate the lake. Here is where the not-so-recent legislation on CSR can be leveraged. Irony or coincidence as you want to call it, this is in a city which has someone like AR Shivakumar, who through rainwater harvesting has ensured that his house doesn’t need a water connection for the past 22 years. He ensured this using treated rainwater not just for bathing and washing, but also for drinking. You can know more about this initiative here.

A public – private partnership with a consortium of stakeholders that include currently polluting industries, nearby residents and some profitable, water intensive industries such as soft drink manufacturers and beer manufacturers should be formed. A combination of public funds and CSR funds of the profitable corporations with water intensive operations should be used for the rejuvenation of the lake. All stakeholders should then be given rights to use the fresh water from the lake and duties to ensure that the lake is properly re-charged at all times. The lake should be the only source of fresh water for the stakeholders to ensure that they have a vested interest in sustaining it.

This is an experiment whose success can create a new model for the sustainability of fast diminishing natural resources in urban settings. It will also ensure that no policy or surreptitious acquisitive tendency reduces the expanse of the natural resource. Whatever may be the pitfalls of the experiment, it can’t do worse than setting a lake on fire.

Anirban-Ghosh

Anirban Ghosh leads the sustainability wing at Mahindra and Mahindra as the Chief Sustainability Officer. He has been working with Mahindra Group since 1999. A gold medal winning engineer from Jadavpur University, Calcutta, Ghosh has pursued doctoral studies in Marketing Management at IIM Ahmedabad. He enjoys music, reading, travelling, driving, cricket and tennis. He is an active public speaker and has represented the nation at the Festival of India across multiple nations.

Views of the author are personal and do not necessarily represent the website’s views.

 

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

Red Tapisim And Poor Directives Demotivate You: Ritu Chhabria, Managing Trustee, Mukul Madhav Foundation

By
Pooja Domadia
-

Ritu Chhabria wears two hats; one is Managing Trustee of Mukul Madhav Foundation (MMF) and the second being Director of Finolex Industries.

MMF is the CSR arm of Finolex Industries involved mostly in activities strengthening the current system and not making new ones. Chhabria believes that there are many existing educational and healthcare facilities in the country that need upliftment. The foundation essentially involves itself in this upgradation.

She wishes that the social sector be free of red tapism and has clear directives so there is clarity and convenience while working for social development.

Thank you for watching the interview until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

‘Arise By Aricent’ To Impart Employable Skills To Engineering Students

By
The CSR Journal
-

Added to a list of initiatives is the launch of ‘Arise by Aricent’ an initiative to create employability opportunities for 3400 college students, by up-skilling engineering undergraduates across Delhi-NCR, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. The Delhi-NCR region will have 1300+ students trained under the ARISE program.

Under the program, the students are trained in the qualification pack for software developers, as developed by the Sector Skills Council NASSCOM.

This on-campus program will engage with 16 Tier-2 and Tier-3 engineering colleges including Bhagwan Parshuram Institute of Technology, IIMT College of Engineering, Greater Noida Institute of Technology & Noida Institute of Engineering and Technology from Greater Noida, ABES College of Engineering, providing the necessary job skills to students from underserved communities. The skills will range from basics like SDLC methodologies, to programming languages like JAVA, and database management languages like SQL, API creation through JDBC, project design, and software testing.

The programme will train the students on essentials such as verbal and written communication, business etiquettes, problem solving, time management, customer orientation, interview skills and other soft skills required to enhance their employment opportunities.  To develop further insights for the students on what it is like to work in a corporate environment, ARISE will integrate a sustained volunteering program wherein current employees will work with these students as mentors/expert coaches for facilitating students’ gaining from professional experiences of those who are part of the IT/ITes industry.

The candidates will be assessed on the NDSC- SSC NASSCOM Qualification Packs (QP) and certified for the relevant job roles, further enhancing the chances of employment.

Speaking on the occasion Mr. Santosh Abraham, VP NASSCOM Foundation said, “We are glad to partner with Aricent to train the youth from underserved communities on key technology skills and make them employment ready for any IT BPM company to hire is a win for both the society and the industry. This partnership also is a great example of how CSR money can be used for the benefit of creating more employment opportunities for the ever-expanding young population of our country.”

NASSCOM Foundation along with Aricent has identified three training partners, Centum Learning, iPRIMED and MindMap, to carry out the on-campus skills development under the ARISE program. The training will be delivered through a series of online and classroom sessions, including project work and learning events like project competitions, tech talks, Industry leadership talks and Mentorship program etc.

Program culmination will include a joint certification from NASSCOM SSC, Aricent, the training partners, and NASSCOM Foundation. The students will also be given placement assistance at the end of the course through regular job fairs and campus connect programs conducted by the NASSCOM Foundation and the training partners.

Thank you for reading the story until the very end. We appreciate the time you have given us. In addition, your thoughts and inputs will genuinely make a difference to us. Please do drop in a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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