Need to Transcend from Corporate Social Responsibility to Citizen Social Responsibility: Amit Upadhyay, Editor-in-Chief, The CSR Journal

Amit Upadhyay, Editor-in-Chief, The CSR Journal addressed the audience at SWAG (Social Welfare & Growth) Awards 2016. He highlighted the need to establish every individual’s sense of duty towards society and nation. Below is the complete speech text.

“Banaa kar faqiron ka ham bhes Ghalib
Tamaashaa-e ahl-e karam dekhte hain !!!

Ghalib, may have had a lot on his mind when he wrote this. After all, who knows the mind of a poet?

Ghalib is not in need of charity and yet, he disguises himself as a beggar to understand the behavior of those practicing charity.

The question is: Why did Ghalib wish to undertake this exercise? Presumably, because he felt that the motivations of charity-givers are complex and all is not what it seems on the surface.

I won’t feign to insult you by thanking you for blessing this occasion with your presence. The cause of charity is obviously something that each one of you feels strongly about, and therefore your presence here is but to be expected.

Instead, I on behalf of The CSR Journal thank you all for all that you have done for society and all that you will continue doing without any desire for fame or thanks.

All of us keep talking about our desire to doing good for the society in our own ways. But ‘doing good’ translates most of the time to ‘feeling good’ not to being effective. The outcome is an act of charity not a solution to the underlying problem.

Take the giving of alms to the poor as an example. The act of charity meets the need to ‘do good’ but is completely ineffective in addressing the prevalence of poverty in society. Charity has to go further and deeper. It is a long term commitment and a lifetime passion. A passion well supported by our ancient culture in all its diversity.

India is still home to a huge number of homeless, a huge mass of people – that still live below the poverty line – And the poverty line is notional – Really, whoever can sustain himself or herself at just Rs 32 a day or even at double that amount!

So, away from NGOs and the Government, there is a need for the Individual to explore the boundary of what they consider to be their own responsibility wrapped in empathy, love and a deep desire to be a part of something much larger than one’s own self.

We, the individuals that form the corporate, the NGOs and the Institutions have to look beyond the NGO’s, beyond the government and even beyond Corporate Social Responsibility and realise that we can’t only depend on these to revolutionise society. As individuals we have a duty far beyond performing occasional acts of giving alms. We have to transcend to a new paradigm of CSR – Citizen’s Social Responsibility.

Allow me to share a few experiences I have had in my attempts to understand this.

There is a girl in my neighbourhood, Poonam. From childhood she was raised by her maid servant as her parents struggled with the modern pressures of career and making ends meet. Due to her own self motivation, she got a scholarship when she advanced to the 10th standard. All of us celebrated her achievement with a party thrown by her Father, but Poonam celebrated it in an entirely different manner.

She actually contributed a part of her scholarship towards educating her maid servant’s daughter. Further, she insisted that she spent an hour, everyday, taken out from her busy XIth standard schedule to help her maid’s daughter in her studies.

It was not money or a random act of charity. It was a long term responsibility that Poonam embraced with her heart and mind. The last that I know, Poonam did very well in her XIth standard, but the maid’s daughter did good as well. Poonam continues to teach the child, now that she is in the XIIth, and the maid’s family has a ray of hope to improve their lot in life.

Several years back I was approached by an NGO to contribute towards educating young kids.  My family was excited about it and contributed funds for educating 3 children for a year. When the year was through, we did not continue with the sponsorship. We did not feel the connect. In spite of asking for details of the children, we were never informed. I assume that it went into a common pool and then on to the ground.

My family wanted to know these children. See, if they needed anything more. We wanted a connect.

Next year, we decided that we would continue our sponsorship – but in our own way. We marked out the children of Pankaj, my driver and Savita, our maid. Jai and Lata were amazing children. We had seen them from their birth -bright and playful. I personally felt a great sense of fulfilment as I took the decision to find the means to sponsor their education through their formative years.

I wondered, when there is so much to be done around our immediate proximity, why do we look beyond. As citizens, isn’t it our duty and our privilege to see that those not as lucky as us get the same opportunity so they can help others when their time comes?

After all – Charity begins at home.

CSR- ‘Citizens Social Responsibility’ and CSR ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’, now need to find a synergy between the organisation and the self. After all, the corporate is not an isolated entity – a lifeless behemoth with an automised brain. A corporate is after all, a collection of individuals – their dreams, their passions, their hopes and their fears.

CSR – Corporate Social Responsibility cannot be viewed as disparate from the people within – the Citizens.

The Srimad Bhagvatam, a defining text of our ancient culture says

Etavaj janma-saphalyam

dehinam iha dehishu

pranair arthair dhiya vacha

shreya-acharanam sada

Broadly this means – “It is the duty of every living being to perform welfare activities for the benefit of others with his life, wealth, intelligence, and words.”

It is not only about money. Donating money is the easiest thing for those who have it. It is human participation that will really make a difference and take us closer to our dreams.

The CSR Journal will take pride if we can facilitate that.”

Thank you for going through the speech 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