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May 5, 2025
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Corporates can lead, when it comes to eradicating child labour

By
Pearl Tiwari, Ambuja Cement Foundation
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Child Labour on Cotton Farms
The number of child workers in India has dropped for the first time in 20 years (4.3 million as compared to 12.6 million child workers in 2001). However, UNICEF and several reputed NGOs dispute these figures, estimating that even now, there are about 28 to 60 million child workers.
Notwithstanding the difficulty of establishing the exact number of child workers, child labour in agriculture, in particular, on cotton farms, remains a serious problem with a quarter of the total workforce still consisting of children below 14 years of age. Children plough, weed, sow, remove pests, spray toxic pesticides or are present in the fields during the spraying of toxic pesticides, and cross-pollinate plants by hand (in the production of hybrid cotton). Furthermore, during harvest, children manually harvest cotton, fill and carry sacks and load them onto trucks.
Many of the chemicals children are exposed to are dangerous nerve agents, designed to impede the nervous system in pests. They can affect children causing tremors, nausea, weakness, and in serious cases paralysis. Exhaustion, heat stroke and malnutrition are common amongst child labourers. All seriously impact on children’s physical and psychological development and can prevent them from completing their education.
The major drivers of child labour in the cotton industry are poverty, the ensuing debts of parents and the labour-intensive work, which drives the sector’s need for a low-cost workforce (motivating the hiring of children). Additionally, children’s small and nimble fingers are deemed perfect for jobs like cross-pollinating and picking – in particular girls. Laws and regulations that are meant to protect children from bonded labour or working in hazardous conditions are not always effectively and correctly implemented.
Better Cotton Initiative, a global effort that promotes sustainable cotton farming standards and practices across 21 countries, engaged Ambuja Cement Foundation as one its implementation partners in India, a large cotton producing nation to propagate sustainable cotton farming. ACF currently works with 1.21 lakh  farmers to uphold BCI’s well defined principles and criteria, which not only prohibit the use of child labour on farms, but make global cotton production sustainable – The Better Cotton Standard System is a holistic approach to sustainable cotton production which covers all three pillars of sustainability: environmental, social and economic.
One of BCI’s key principles is ‘Decent Work’, defined by the International Labour Organization (ILO) as work that provides opportunities for people to work productively in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. Decent Work is central to achieving a BCI licence and child labour features prominently as one among a number of critical Decent Work topics, including gender equality, equal pay, health and safety, forced labour and non-discrimination. By engaging with farmers through ‘Decent Work’ training sessions, conducted on an ongoing basis, we are helping farmers see the bigger picture – and understand the hazards and long term health impacts of the use of pesticides and heavy, hazardous tasks on children’s health and wellbeing.
Eradicating child labour requires concerted efforts by all the entities including governments, public and private companies, and even consumers. With the CSR agenda in India stronger than ever before, corporates have a responsibility to track the supply chains of the cotton in their products to ensure products bought and sold in the country are not indirectly supporting the use of forced or child labour and must demonstrate what they are doing to address child labour in the cotton industry.
The corporate sector needs to closely work with their suppliers to improve standards, so children are not being harmed, and seek alternatives where sources refuse to be compliant. Companies can also play an active role in advocating and educating against child labour in target communities. Consumers too have a pivotal role to play, by only purchasing cotton products made from ethically certified cotton suppliers and rejecting products from companies that do not demonstrate otherwise.
Pearl Tiwari, Director & Chief Executive, Ambuja Cement Foundation

Pearl Tiwari is the Director of Ambuja Cement Foundation, the CSR wing of Ambuja Cements Limited. In a professional career spanning over 30 years, Pearl has been associated with the not-for-profit, educational and corporate sectors. Pearl joined Ambuja in 2000 and ever since has been at the helm of nurturing the Ambuja Cement Foundation that has expanded from a fledgeling team to nearly 400 development professionals, with a pan-India presence active in 21 locations across 11 states.

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

Thank you for reading. Please drop a line and help us do better.
Regards,
The CSR Journal Team
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Ashima Bhat, Group Head, CSR, HDFC Bank talks Impact

By
Kasmin Fernandes
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Ashima Bhat - HDFC Bank
With an expenditure of Rs 374 crore in the last financial year, HDFC Bank is one of the largest spenders of CSR in the country, yet its focus has always been on sustainability.
“We believe that business cannot prosper if the communities in which they operate fail. Thus all our social initiatives have a concerted and long-term approach which dovetails into one of the core values of the bank; ‘Sustainability’. We believe in making a real impact on the ground, rather than simply providing monetary support,” says Ashima Bhat, Group Head, Corporate Social Responsibility at HDFC Bank who has been with the bank for over 25 years.

What is HDFC Bank Parivartan?

All the social initiatives fall under the umbrella of Parivartan, which as the name suggests means bringing about a change or making a difference in the lives of people. To give you a perspective of the impact, the bank spent INR 443.8 crore in 2018-19 under HDFC Bank Parivartan (their CSR programme) which has impacted over 3.5 crore lives across the country.
Excerpts from an exclusive interview with Ms. Bhat:

From contributions to people affected by Cyclone Fani to working with teachers through Navachar Pustika, innovation has been a major theme for HDFC Bank CSR programmes.

We are in an age where business and CSR are not separated from each other. As in case of business, one needs to look at new ideas to improve business, same applies to CSR. We believe that Innovation creates interest and can solve issues that earlier would have looked impossible. Innovation can lead to increased engagement, interaction, motivation, productivity and collaboration. Therefore, we try to be as innovative as we could in our CSR processes.
With regard to Cyclone Fani, being a socially responsible corporate we felt it was our duty to contribute towards helping the people who are suffering. We will restore and repair 20 government schools. The plans include refurbishing school premises and restoring sanitation facilities. But much needs to be done and HDFC Bank is committed to support the people of Odisha who have clearly witnessed tough times.
As for our Teaching-the-Teachers (3T) programme, that is truly innovation at its best. It works to draw out innovation from the participants themselves. The manual Navachar Pustika is a compilation of innovative teaching ideas contributed by teachers themselves. These include use of dramatization and puppetry to arouse curiosity amongst students.
One of the innovations in the manual that I personally found interesting is use of the board game Snakes & Ladders to teach language where each square has an alphabet to teach students the alphabet and make a word out of it.

What is your approach towards CSR? What are the areas of focus for HDFC Bank?

For change to take place, we firmly believe that we have to walk shoulder to shoulder with society in the quest towards Nation-Building. Thus, HDFC Bank through Parivartan looks to make beneficiaries an equal partner and ensure accountability; so that they may reap the benefits in the long run. The Bank works in 5 key areas of:
– Rural Development
– Skill Development and Livelihood Enhancement
– Education
– Health and Well being
– Financial Literacy & Inclusion
Under HDFC Bank Parivartan, we reach out to communities and enable them to make a transition from a vicious cycle of poverty to a virtuous cycle of growth.

How does the bank choose its implementing partners?

HDFC Bank undertakes CSR projects which are closely linked with the principles of sustainable development and shared value, with the involvement of local institutions and the community at large. The implementing partners are screened basis our criteria to ascertain the entity’s credibility and its ability to execute the proposed projects.

Could you take us through some of your CSR programmes?

We have a few flagship programmes  including the Holistic Rural Development Programme (HRDP), Sustainable Livelihood Initiative (SLI) and the annual blood donation drive.
In rural development, HRDP is a testament to our effort to help bridge the India-Bharat divide. The Bank is working across villages to bring about a sustainable change in the areas of healthcare & hygiene, financial literacy and natural resource management. So far, HRDP has reached 1,000 villages across India touching more than 3 lakh households.
Under education, HDFC Bank runs the Teaching-the-Teachers (3T) programme. The objective here is to unravel the innovation streak among school teachers in India to enable them to impart education in a more dynamic and creative manner. It has reached 14 lakh teachers and benefitted more than 1.6 crore students across 6 lakh Government schools.
Sustainable Livelihood Initiative (SLI) as the name suggest is one of the largest initiative of its kind aimed at women in the bottom of the pyramid in India. Under SLI, the Bank has already made close to 90 lakh women across thousands of villages financially independent. This financial empowerment not only benefits the womenfolk, but also their families. Thus, the Bank has been able to make a difference in the lives of close to 3.5 crore Indians in rural India.
HDFC Bank also conducts one of the largest single-day blood collection drives. This effort has been recognized by the Guinness Book of World Record in 2013. Over 12 years, the bank has helped collect over 10 lakh units of blood.
Being a bank, we believe in supporting financial literacy and inclusion as more of a duty than social responsibility. Through our financial literacy programme, we have been able to reach out to over 59 lakh participants during 2017-18 across the country.

Does the company encourage employee volunteering?

Absolutely! In-fact, the bank encourages its employees to lead social initiatives. In our communications across teams, we always encourage employees to involve themselves in community activities and contribute to charities of their choice. This approach proactively engages employees to solicit their active involvement in the Bank’s CSR programmes. Our employees recently participated in a drought mitigation activity in Maharashtra, which was an eye-opening experience.
The blood donation drive is the bank’s largest employee-led initiative where our employees come together to assist and addresses the issue of shortage of blood. We also have “Payroll Giving Program” to allow employees donate a part of their salary. This amount is matched by the bank and the combined amount is donated by the employee to a cause of his/ her choice.

Are any of the goals aligned with the SDGs?

Yes. The UN set 17 goals in 2015 for the year 2030, whereas the bank has been working towards most of these goals from much before.
Our HRDP & SLI programmes have been targeted towards goals like eliminating poverty, hunger, inequality and create opportunities for decent employment, economic growth, sustainable cities and communities.
Additionally, through our health and hygiene programme, we are providing sanitation, good health and well-being. Our Teaching the Teachers (3T) programme is improving quality education and reducing inequality.

Where do you see gaps in CSR implementation in India?

The CSR space in still in a fairly nascent stage and evolving every day. I believe that as with any regulation, the industry is in a learning stage and we are working toward more meaningful implementation. At present, I feel there’s a need for better collaboration and learning between corporates to optimise efforts.

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Avashya Foundation to plant 1,02,500 plants under Maitree initiative

By
The CSR Journal
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Maitree Initiative

Avashya Foundation, the CSR arm of Allcargo Logistics, has announced that it will plant 1,02,500 trees by working with 2300 farmers in Jawahar, Mokada and Karjat – the tribal belt in Maharashtra, under its Maitree 2019- 2020 initiative.

To set the ball rolling for Maitree 2019-2020, the Foundation celebrated World Environment Day involving over 200 farmers in that region wherein it created awareness on the plantation. With this, the total count has gone up to 0.5 million trees in the last 4 years. The vision of the organisation is to plant a million trees by 2021.

Maitree which launched in 2014 aims to provide sustainable sources of livelihood to the tribal communities and economically backward population through tree plantation.  The program ensures a broader outreach to a large number of families from under-developed and tribal regions and improving their socio-economic condition.

“Since its inception, Maitree has proved to be a deep impact project which not only conserves the environment but also creates a sustainable livelihood for the poor community. We want to build a society that is sustainable and self-sufficient. Maitree has helped us achieve that to a great extent, said Mr Shashi Kiran Shetty, Chairman, Allcargo Logistics Ltd”

Maitree 2019-2020 comes on the back of the success of its previous edition. The previous edition culminated with a Mango Festival at the Allcargo Logistics office in Mumbai on May 17, 2019, wherein farmers from the Mokhada and Jawahar regions in Maharashtra sold 250 dozens of Kesar mangoes, bred from the trees planted under Maitree, to the Allcargo employees. The farmers sold processed cashew at the Mango Festival as well. Avashya Foundation is converging Maitree with MNREGA, a government flagship scheme.

Maitree, a unique project that meets the goals of environmental sustainability as well as community empowerment through tree plantations, has benefited over 10000 farmers by undertaking tree plantation drive in the tribal regions of Maharashtra and Karnataka. Approximately 5 lakh fruit bearing trees have been planted in the tribal regions of Maharashtra and Karnataka since its inception.

“The plantation season is about to start. We are in talks with the forest officers to identify new regions and farmers who can reap the benefits of Maitree. Once monsoon is in full swing, we will start taking employees as volunteers for the plantation drive, said Dr Nilratan Shende, DGM – CSR, Allcargo Logistics Ltd”

The Maitree initiative aims to empower communities by involving them in planting trees that will provide sustainable livelihoods. Fruit bearing trees add to the family income when the produce is sold in the market. Thus, Maitree helps increase green cover, reduces carbon impact, provides income generation options and mitigates rural migration. The underlying principle is to empower rural families so that they can participate in the growth and development story of mainstream society.

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CSR: Combating Deforestation – Responsibility of Companies to Protect Environment

By
Hency Thacker
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Preventing Deforestation

Forests are critical to protecting the environment. Protecting them is essential in order to avert the worst impacts of climate change. According to the climate experts, by halting deforestation and investing in reforestation and wetland conservation we could achieve up to a third of the global greenhouse gas reductions needed by 2030 to stay on track with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

In fact, research from The Nature Conservancy shows that halting deforestation can cause more impact than taking every single car off the road. Apart from this, the forests also contribute significantly to protecting global water resources and support 80% of the planet’s terrestrial biodiversity.

However, the global tree cover loss has reached a record 29.7m hectares in 2016, a trend that shows no signs of slowing. The production of agricultural commodities is the single biggest driver of deforestation globally. The companies that produce, process, use, and sell these agricultural commodities, therefore, have huge responsibility thrust upon them regarding safeguarding forest landscapes.

These companies need to take a leading role in breaking the link between agricultural production and forest destruction. In order to achieve this a complete transformation of the markets for many commonly used products is required. Major investments are needed in research and development of systems that would enable the companies to carry out their operations away from a system that incentivises continued expansion into forested landscapes and towards one that supports sustainable sourcing and make forest protection and reforestation economically and politically viable.

In recognition of their influence on global forests, nearly 500 companies have made commitments to eliminate deforestation from their supply chains over the past decade. These companies span global supply chains, from growers and traders to manufacturers and retailers.

However, despite this positive trend, confusion over how to go about fulfilling their commitments, along with a lack of consistency in measuring progress are issues that the companies struggle with on a regular basis. To change and aid the companies to be more accountable, The Accountability Framework initiative has been launched by a coalition of civil society partners which seeks to close this implementation gap by giving companies the support they need to turn their pledges into action.

The framework defines what “good” looks like when it comes to setting, implementing, and demonstrating progress towards corporate commitments to eliminate deforestation, ecosystem conversion, and human rights abuses from agriculture and forestry supply chains.

It provides consistent measures of progress across commodities, regions, and supply chain positions and presents a path to companies to credibly demonstrate continuous improvement and fulfilment of commitments. By using the framework, companies can help ensure that their commitments, activities, monitoring systems, and reporting practices reflect common and agreed-upon norms and best practices.

Companies now have the opportunity to set clear commitments to reduce deforestation, take action in implementing them throughout their supply chains, and credibly demonstrate the part they are playing in industry transformation.

Thank you for reading. Please drop a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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This Blood Donation App Connects Patients to Donors

By
Kasmin Fernandes
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blood donation
SAVIOUR is a location-based blood donation app
On the occasion of World Blood Donors Day 2019, in-vitro diagnostic company Transasia Bio-Medicals Ltd. has unveiled ‘SAVIOUR’, a location-based blood donation app that is available free to everyone. The new app is likely to empower those who have the resources to acquire blood but lose out on timely help due to inadequate blood bank infrastructure.
According to WHO (World Health Organisation) estimates, blood donation by 1% of the population is the minimum needed to meet a country’s basic blood requirements. In 2016-17, India’s blood collection fell 15% over previous year, or 1.9 million units short of the 1% benchmark. The WHO norm, however, is based on global averages and does not take into account India-specific factors and disease burden.
As per industry reports, in 2016-17, over 6.57 lakh units of blood and its products were discarded. 50% of the wasted units was Plasma which has a longer shelf life as compared to whole blood and red blood cells that have to be used within 35 days. Blood donation app SAVIOUR connects patients to the nearest donors, and notifies the patient in real-time on the number of donors who accept the request. Additionally, it sends out notifications to the registered donors on the need for blood based on their type. Reminders sent by the app, ensure that the donors do not forget about their commitment.
Once a donation has been made, a donor is not advised to donate blood in the recovery period. At this time, the blood donation app goes into a precautionary dormant state, in order to ensure complete safety of the donor. Moreover, the app makes it very convenient for donors; they just need to check-in at the nearest hospital through the app, a step that helps save time and ensure credibility. Donors are incentivized with personal goodwill points, based on the number of donations and lives saved.
According to the company’s Chairman & Managing Director, Suresh Vazirani, ‘Blood donation app SAVIOUR’ has been developed with a vision to empower both, donors and patients, and to save them from unethical practices which have led to corruption and exploitation of the needy.

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Canada Is Banning Single-Use Plastics as Early as 2021

By
The CSR Journal
-
single use plastic straws

Canada intends to ban single-use plastics as early as 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Monday at the Gault Nature Reserve in Mont St-Hilaire, south of Montreal.

While details on how exactly the ban will be carried out are not yet clear, Trudeau said the government will explore which items need to be banned and will conduct research to determine the best way forward,

Less than 10% of plastic used in Canada gets recycled, and Canadians throw away over 3 million tonnes of plastic waste every year. What’s more, about one-third of plastics are used for single-use or short-lived products, according to the government.

“Canadians know first-hand the impacts of plastic pollution, and are tired of seeing their beaches, parks, streets, and shorelines littered with plastic waste,” Trudeau said in a statement. “We have a responsibility to work with our partners to reduce plastic pollution, protect the environment, and create jobs and grow our economy. We owe it to our kids to keep the environment clean and safe for generations to come.”

Single-use plastic products include items like straws, water bottles, plastic bags, cutlery, and take-out food containers — and they all wreak havoc on marine life when they make their way into the oceans.

Up to 15 billion plastic bags are used in Canada every year and 57 million straws are used every single day.

“We’ve all seen the disturbing images of fish, sea turtles, whales, and other wildlife being injured or dying because of plastic garbage in our oceans. Canadians expect us to act,” the Hon. Catherine McKenna, minister of environment and climate change, said in a statement.

One million birds and over 100,000 sea mammals get hurt or die when they mistake plastic for food or become entangled, according to the government’s statement.

Trudeau announced that the government will work provinces and territories to come up with suitable standards and goals for companies that manufacture plastic products or sell products with plastic packaging.

Source: Global Citizen

Capgemini sets up ‘Digital Academies’ in India

By
The CSR Journal
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Ashwin Yardi - CEO of Capgemini India addressing media & students during launch of Digital Academy
Ashwin Yardi - CEO of Capgemini India addressing media & students during launch of Digital Academy

Capgemini has launched its Digital Academy initiative in India, a one-of-a-kind program focused on digital inclusion aimed to reintegrate a wide range of people from marginalized backgrounds. The India launch is part of Capgemini’s global program in digital inclusion to train excluded populations to use the best digital tools and facilitate their integration within the society of today and tomorrow. The beneficiaries of the initiative include disadvantaged youth who are NEET (not in education, employment or training) and under-represented groups from society.

In this first phase in India, two Digital Academies are being set up: a non-residential and co-ed centre in Mumbai and an all-woman residential centre in Pune. Capgemini has partnered with Pratham Infotech Foundation to implement the program and Simplon.Co, for content, knowledge and pedagogy. Capgemini will play an advisory role through its Human Resources (HR) teams and subject matter experts (SMEs) to validate training curricula and pedagogy and ensure that the candidates are trained in competences corresponding to needs of the job market.

The Mumbai and Pune Digital Academies will initially focus on training 100 unemployed youth in future skills; 50 in each city. The technical courses will include coding, web development, and SQL (Standard Query Language). Additionally, soft skills will be imparted to the participants to ensure they are job ready. The length of each training program is around 500 hours.  Every successful participant will be awarded a diploma certified by Capgemini and partners.

“The two Digital Academy centres reinforce our commitment to drive equal opportunity and leverage our expertise as a technology company to bring individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds into the mainstream job market,” said Ashwin Yardi, CEO, Capgemini in India and member of the Group Executive Committee. “The women-only centre in Pune reflects a critical pillar of our strategic focus to embrace and enable diversity so that women are an integral part of the workforce.”

Thierry Delaporte, Chief Operating Officer of the Capgemini Group, comments “At Capgemini, we are convinced that technology has an inclusive and positive role to play in our societies. The breadth and depth of our skillsets mean we are equipped to be architects of positive futures. Our Groupwide focus on digital inclusion will enable us to mobilize our collective passion, connections and expertise to support individuals with the digital skills they need to sustain themselves in the new world shaped by the digital revolution.”

 With the aim to reintegrate a wide range of people from marginalized backgrounds (such as refugees, members of the LGBTQ+ community, people with disabilities, the unemployed, etc.), Capgemini has opened Digital Academies and similar digital inclusion initiatives in a number of countries around the world including North America, Spain, The Netherlands, UK, and soon in Germany. In France, Capgemini co-founded La Grande École du Numérique (GEN) with several public and private organizations – including Simplon – to offer digital training to disadvantaged young people.

 A key pillar of the Group’s CSR program “Architects of Positive Futures”

With the goal of focusing 80% of its social impact initiatives on promoting digital inclusion and future skills by 2020, Capgemini’s aim is to help excluded populations, notably from disadvantaged or dislocated parts of society, to – benefit from the opportunities that come from a digital lifestyle and the everyday use of digital tools. Furthermore, it will ensure Capgemini’s specific global expertise and capabilities are maximized, through work with innovative partners such as global social organizations, as well as other corporations and institutes.

Capgemini’s Digital Inclusion initiative is a key pillar of its Groupwide CSR program “Architects of Positive Futures”. The other two focus areas centre on:

  • Diversity: to build an inclusive workplace and attract and retain a diverse workforce to enable Capgemini and its employees to thrive
  • Environmental Sustainability: to minimize Capgemini’s business-related environmental impacts, and provide support to clients with their sustainability challenges.

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CSR: Fight to Eliminate Child Labour

By
Hency Thacker
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Child Labour in India

June 12 has been recognised as the World Day Against Child Labour across the world. Child labour is a cruel yet highly prevalent practice across the world. Several fundamental and human rights are violated in the practice. Despite the countries of the world making stringent laws to abolish child labour, it exists at a huge scale.

Eradiating child labour has been adopted by the UN in its 17 Sustainable Development Goals target which the countries have agreed to meet by the year 2025. In 2017, India has ratified two core conventions of the International Labour Organization on child labour. However, the country needs to ensure that the benefit of those conventions reaches the most vulnerable children.

According to the 2011 Census, in the age group 5-14 years, 10.1 million of 259.6 million constituted working children. Even though there was a decline in the number of working children to 3.9% in 2011 from 5% in 2001, the decline rate is insufficient to meet target 8.7 of the SDGs.

In order to meet the deadline, India needs to make serious investments in enhancing its body of knowledge on child labour, emphasising quantitative information. While there are many common factors across the spectrum, each sector and each demographical segment will have its own set of factors and drivers that push children into the labour market. These have to be addressed. Such factors and drivers can only be identified and analysed through proper research, surveys and assessments.

Railways are used by kidnappers to transport children to be forced into child labour. The mode is also used by children who have willingly absconded from their homes in search of work and a better life. The organisation needs to play an important role in identifying them and rescuing them from falling into the trap.

Apart from this, the growing interest of the private sector is a great opportunity that has to be further utilised, particularly to leverage key influencers in domestic and multinational supply chains. It is also a matter of competitive advantage for multi-nationals to ensure that child labour is effectively eliminated in their supply chains. A sector-wide culture of child labour-free businesses has to be nurtured.

The fight against child labour is not just the responsibility of one, it is the responsibility of all.

Thank you for reading. Please drop a line and help us do better.

Regards,
The CSR Journal Team

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14-year-old girl is rainproofing rag pickers in India

By
Kasmin Fernandes
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Teen leader Sanjana with rag pickers in india
Sanjana with rag pickers in India
Imagine getting up early in the morning each day to go to work; work that involves cleaning the garbage from gutters, sewers, drains, and streets of the city. The downsides of the job: low income, health hazards, short life expectancy and lack of dignity. Add to that widespread substance addiction. Yet, there are people who do this job relentlessly, each day. A broad estimate would put the number of rag pickers in India anywhere between 15 to 40 lakhs. Mumbai itself is estimated to have more than 3 lakh rag pickers.

Concerns about rag pickers in India

As per the data from a sample study by MCGM, 40% of these rag pickers have an average per capita income of less than INR 3,500 and approximate 70% are illiterate. Their health is a major concern. 94% of the rag pickers in this survey were addicted to alcohol, tobacco or drugs and 43% of these were minors. The study found out that 63% of the surveyed population are exposed to diseases like TB, dengue, malaria, etc.

Teen activist Sanjana Runwal

A 14-year-old city girl, Sanjana Runwal, has started an initiative ‘Revolution for Rag Pickers’, directed at improving the lives of rag pickers in India. In association with BMC ‘H West’ Ward in Bandra, Mumbai, Sanjana and her brother’s Clean Up Foundation donated raincoats and gumboots to over 200 rag pickers that will ensure their safety from hazardous materials during monsoon. The distribution was done at an event held in Mumbai in association with the NGO Aasra Welfare Association.
Clean Up will ensure a good meal for the rag pickers once every month. These meals will be prepared by members of Mahila Udyog Gruh, an initiative where women come together to cook and supply meals. The monthly meal plan will also help these women to generate income for their families. Sanjana intends to widen the area of operations for her activities and wants to carry out many more such activities.
Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s quote – ‘Be the change that you wish to see in the world,’ she says, “I want to bring about a positive change in the lives of the rag pickers in India. They too are human beings like us and we should stop turning a blind eye towards them. If they stop doing what they do, the cities will become unliveable. Cringing and covering our noses when we see them will not help anyone.” Wise words indeed coming from a 14-year-old.

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OYO launches its CSR programme ‘OYO Reach’ from Shimla

By
The CSR Journal
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OYO Hotels & Homes, South Asia’s largest, China’s top two and the world’s fastest growing chain of hotels, homes and living spaces firm launched its corporate social responsibility assistance programme ‘OYO Reach’. The program has commenced from Shimla where 83% of OYO hotels in the hill station have been equipped with rainwater harvesting systems. Implementation of this technique will lead to an enormous increase in the savings of potentially 81,000 litres of water requirement for hotels in the hill station.

Through its CSR assistance programme, the company is aiming to provide necessary technical and financial assistance to its partners across the nation in a wide variety of projects and activities, OYO said in a statement. The company will also focus on skill development, economic opportunity creation and sustainable tourism, it added.

Elaborating on the development, Aditya Ghosh, CEO, India & South Asia, OYO Hotels & Homes, said “Shimla has been grappling with water scarcity concerns for the past few years and we would like to contribute towards alleviating them. As part of our CSR program, OYO REACH, we are happy to assist in the adoption of rainwater harvesting systems in OYOs in Shimla. Since tourism has been one of the most important contributors in boosting the state’s economy, adoption of such techniques will not only help Shimla regain its stature as the most preferred hill station but also promote sustainable tourism practices across the hotel industry”.

Mr Puneet Chopra, owner of OYO Alpine Heritage Hotel, one of the early adopters of this technique in OYO said, “Every year during summer, Shimla faces water crisis, and last year the situation worsened and hit the tourist inflow. We are glad that OYO has taken this initiative of supporting asset owners like me to manage water requirements all year round. This will help in ensuring that the tourists experience the best of hospitality that Himachal Pradesh has to offer.”

OYO has been a frontrunner in modernizing small and budget hotels with the use of latest technology and first-of-its-kind innovations.

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