The capital of Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow is a historic city, located at the bank of river Gomti. Also known as the city of Tehzeeb, Lucknow is famous for its unique culture. The people of Lucknow are known for their polite mannerisms and their love for poetry, literature, art and food. The city’s historic roots make it a popular tourist destination, with major attractions being Bara Imambara, Chota Imambara, Rumi Darwaza, British Residency, Chattar Manzil, Hazratganj Market and many more.
This makes it very important to develop the infrastructure, safety and many other facilities in the city, in order to enable a pleasant stay for guests from across the globe. CSR has played a tremendous role in India in upgradation and development of infrastructure and safety measures across its territory.
In FY2021-22, Lucknow was recipient of Rs. 66.54 Cr. in CSR funds from 120 companies. The major areas of focus of CSR initiatives in the district were Health, Education and Environment, with the respective amounts of Rs. 37.37 Cr., Rs. 19.33 Cr., and Rs. 3.6 Cr. The top spender in the district was Hindustan Aeronautics Limited that spent Rs. 14.24 Cr., followed by HCL Technologies Limited with a spending of Rs. 8.66 Cr., and HDFC Bank Limited with a spending of Rs. 5.33 Cr.
Let us look at top companies who have contributed in the development of Lucknow through their CSR initiatives.
Kotak Mahindra Bank’s Support to KGMU
Under its Corporate Social Responsibility commitment, Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited in association with Impact Guru Foundation has extended support to King George’s Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow, to provide critical life support ambulances. The initiative was flagged off by Honourable Governor of Uttar Pradesh, Smt. Anandiben Patel at the inauguration event.
The initiative underscores Kotak’s commitment to improve access to healthcare, particularly in semi-urban and rural areas where timely medical intervention and support is not easily available. These state-of-the-art cardiac ambulances are equipped with specialised equipment, trained personnel and Advanced Life Support (ALS) capabilities and are designed to respond quickly to traumatic emergencies and transport patients to trauma centers or hospitals. Over the next few weeks, this initiative will be extended to charitable hospitals including M.Y. Hospital, Indore; Karnataka Lingayat Education Society (KLES), Belagavi; Jivan Jyot Trust Hospital, Surat; and Jeevan Rekha Critical Care & Trauma Hospital, Jaipur.
Himanshu Nivsarkar, Senior EVP and Head – CSR, Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd., said “Under our CSR commitment, we strive to improve healthcare accessibility, ensuring every individual has access to quality healthcare when they need it the most. Through this initiative, we aim to provide 24*7 services to medical and trauma related emergencies, bridging as a life-saving link between the patient and the healthcare facility.”
Reckitt’s ‘Diarrhoea Net Zero’
Reckitt, world’s leading consumer health and hygiene company, under its flagship campaign Dettol Banega Swasth India launched ‘Diarrhoea Net Zero’ with support from the Government of Uttar Pradesh in Lucknow in June this year. In the next 3 years, the program is expected to impact 10 million people across Uttar Pradesh addressing 26% of the burden of diarrhoea.
Dettol Banega Swasth India has been working with the Government of Uttar Pradesh since 2015 to improve knowledge, attitude and behaviour of children and community and ensure better hygiene and health outcomes. Reckitt claims that Dettol and its partners have reached over 10.8 million children with its ‘School Hygiene Education Programme’ leading to a reduction in diarrhoea cases in school children and a reduction of nearly 39% in school absenteeism due to health issues.
Reckitt’s various interventions across the state, include supporting villages to become Open Defecation Free, promoting hygiene and sanitation at India’s biggest religious gathering – Kumbh Mela, receiving multiple accolades and appreciation from the Government of India for its initiatives. With the launch of ‘Diarrhoea Net Zero’ programme in partnership with Uttar Pradesh government, Dettol Banega Swasth India will continue to bring positive change in the lives of children and reduce the prevalence of Diarrhoea in the state through a scalable and replicable model.
HCL Foundation’s MoU with Lucknow Development Authority for a greener Lucknow
HCL Foundation (HCLF), the CSR arm of HCL Technologies signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) in March, this year. The objective of the MoU is to increase green cover in order to improve habitat, enhance biodiversity, and restore the ecosystem. As part of HCL Technologies’ CSR Programme, afforestation will be done across a vast land along Sultanpur Road. This comes under the company’s flagship programme, HCL Harit, for the purpose of afforestation in Lucknow. The MoU is important for preservation of native species of plants and habitat improvement for birds, bees, and other animals.
Oxygen plant by Tech Mahindra in Lucknow
Tech Mahindra Foundation, The CSR arm of Tech Mahindra announced in July this year that they will be installing an oxygen plant at Vivekananda Polyclinic and Institute of Medical Science in Lucknow. This will be able to support up to 100 beds by increasing oxygen port capacity for the treatment of critically ill patients, they announced. This CSR activity is part of Tech Mahindra’s COVID-19 relief initiatives.
Godrej Locks’ ‘Live Safe, Life Free’ programme
Godrej Locks announced a ‘Live Safe, Life Free’ programme in November, this year, under which they will run a ‘Home Safety Awareness Campaign’ across 52 locations in the ‘10 most vulnerable Indian cities’ over 52 weeks. Lucknow has been identified as one of these cities. With this initiative, Godrej Locks intends to strengthen its position on home safety by engaging with individuals and providing them with direct access to safety solutions. The Brand will be working to encourage citizens to check on their home safety and stay protected against threats of robberies and burglaries.
As per per National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), the year 2021, reported about 17% increase in cases of theft, robbery and burglary within residential premises as compared to 2020. Hence, Godrej Locks will identify 52 locations across ten most vulnerable cities in India. These have been identified as Delhi, Mumbai, Bhubaneswar, Jaipur, Lucknow, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, and Patna.
Adani Foundtion to support heart treatment of infant in Lucknow
With the initiative of Adani Group owner Gautam Adani, a 4-year-old girl from Uttar Pradesh (Uttar Pradesh News) is about to get a new life. Manushree, who is suffering from serious heart disease, needs Rs 1 lakh 25 thousand for the operation at Lucknow’s Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS). As soon as this matter reached Gautam Adani, he immediately extended his helping hand. Gautam Adani recently tweeted that Adani Foundation will meet Manushree’s family to help her and will also provide all possible help for her treatment.
Salon chain Naturals’ CSR initiative for acid attack victims
Unisex beauty salon chain ‘Naturals’ signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Chhanv Foundation in August, this year. Non-profit organisation Chhanv Foundation runs Sheroes Hangout, a cafe managed by acid attack survivors in Lucknow. Under this CSR initiative, the salon will provide free training to two acid attack survivors. They also announced setting up a nail art studio at Sheroes Hangout to support girls working at the cafe.
