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The National Bank for Agricultural & Rural Development, Nabard and the Bankers Institute of Rural Development, an institutional wing of Nabard, in collaboration with CAB, Pune, organized a training workshop on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and the wide role it can play in the process of development.
The workshop held at the Lucknow, BIRD campus from 5 th Oct to 9 th Oct 2009 , revealed how the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can be used to open up a wider debate on issues related to the development in a sustainable way. The interactive session, under the guidance of esteemed resource persons demonstrated that CSR in partnership with various stakeholders which includes Govt, labour, NGOs, consumers and other National Standard Bodies and contribute largely to development of the country.
It also demonstrates that CSR can mobilize employers and trade unions to become involved in the integration of severely disadvantaged or excluded. The five day workshop with about 20 participants across the country from corporate, NGOs, officials from Nabard, brainstormed on issues related to poverty, health, education and environmental degradation.
 Solving case study by teams
A range of tools provided by the organizers, like a coveted case study in form of a publication, CDs developed by Dr. R.R. Kulkarni, DGM & Member faculty of Reserve Bank of India and Mr. S.V Nemlekar of BIRD, triggered enormous interest among the participants who were divided into 3 teams, throwing a challenge before each team to solve the problems in the given case studies.
The presentations made by each team, attempted to bring out a more holistic approach that enables all those involved- to develop a response that actually matches the needs of the area. Every effort and resources has to bring development through creation of new opportunities in a more sustainable way.
Teams expressed deep concern for the ground problems…
One of the many methods as suggested by the teams were awareness raising, with long term sustainability. Addressing to the root cause of the problems related to health and nutrition is more necessary.
For example building small health treatment centers in villages, and even regular health camps will not bring any solace to the community, unless clean drinking water and proper nutrition is ensured. According to WHO, 1.4 million child dies from diarrhea in India , 860,000 child die every year from malnutrition. About 1/4 th of the global disease burden could be prevented by increasing access to safe drinking water and improved nutrition.
No welfare without community participation
However, all the teams completely discouraged philanthropy as for years; such practice has fostered dependency and submissiveness. The stress was more on a well planned capacity building approach though training, formation of self help groups or committees and giving them a credit linkage in form of soft loans.
Interestingly, it is important to note that after each team completed their analysis with the case studies, concluded in taking the community into the decision support system.
Every participant consented on the fact that the major challenge before the developing countries is not a shortage of natural resources, but more so the underdevelopment of the human resources. Thus, now the institutional intervention, not in isolation, but in partnership is inevitable to reinforce sustainable growth and development by bringing the community into decision making systems.
The success stories of CSR
The given case study was on Hindalco Industries Limited, an industry leader in aluminum and copper in Asia . Hindalco commissioned its aluminum facility at Renukut District in Eastern UP in year 1962. This area with a high population density is rich in natural resources and the Son river flows through the district from east to west. Hindalco has a major aluminum plant at Renukut. The area however, lacks the basic infrastructure and the population is largely poor. However, infrastructure for electricity has been well developed by the company to facilitate its industries, which in the process out of 1346 villages have electrified 817 villages.
For years unemployment in the rural areas has been a major contributing factor for the high incidence of poverty. Under the CSR initiatives, of Hindalco around 5100 self help groups (SHG's) are reported to have been formed in the district of which around 2200 have been credit linked. The company has outsourced this task to various NGO's working in the area.
Understanding the fact that there can be no sustainable natural resource management unless it involves the participation of all inhabitants of the concerned environment/area in an active and sustainable manner, Hindalco took upon itself the task to bring dramatic transformation of people's life by actively contributing social and economic development of the communities in which it operates.
The company has set a precedence to be marked, by employing a team headed by a community development expert, exclusively to execute CSR, which is quite unlikely with most corporate houses. The CSR head, Rajesh Singh, Hindalco was one of the participants in the workshop, who also admitted to the fact that CSR objectives cannot be achieved as bestowing the task as additional responsibilities to the employees. It needs devoted team with the required expertise, if the company is at all serious about CSR.
Hindalco in partnership with various organizations, including Nabard, has brought a significant change in people's lives in the area.
Ambuja Cement
Similarly, the case study on Ambuja Cement environmental policy, under CSR has achieved 100 percent reuse of reclaimed water, reduce in the F.O sludge and reuse as supplementary fuel has been achieved. And the company is trying hard to achieve 100 percent success in segregation of infectious waste and conservation of electrical energy.
Natural Resource Management
Successful project case studies on Natural Resource Management, were showcased by Dr.Kulkarni and BAIF, Vice President, Mr.Bharat Kakade . In Maharashtra, BAIF, a non governmental organization in partnership with Nabard, has successfully, generated huge livelihood opportunities through Wadi projects, and watershed managements has brought great changes in the life of thousand of villagers in many tribal areas of India. Mr.Kakade, mentioned that due to Wadi project tribal community have stopped going to forest for food, the spin off effect is that lot of forest reserve is saved.
Field visit; Tata Motors CSR project area
Tata Motors actively participated in the workshop, with representatives from CSR team participating in the workshop and arranging for an exclusive field visit to their project area. Tata Motors runs its commercial vehicle plant in Chinhat, on the outskirts of Lucknow . The plant has the capacity to manufacture up to 300 commercial vehicles per day. There are 23 villages surrounding this plant, with a population of 22000. They shifted giving away their land for the plant with a compensation, which could not sustain them for long. The company, under its CSR activities, has two institutional wings to execute the development activities in the mentioned villages, known as Samaj Vikas Kendra and Jan Parivar Kalyan Kendra.
The team interacted with villagers and found women are engaged in candle making, Chikan karigari, file making etc. There is a computer training centre also, for village girl students.
Field visit; CIMAP
The team also visited the Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP), campus, experiencing a wide variety of medicinal plants cultivated and processed there. CIMAP over years have made tremendous impact in the herbal medicine research creating new livelihood opportunities for poor farmers. Time to time several awareness camps, training programs, farmers fairs are organized by the CIMAP, it was truly an enriching experience for the entire team participating in the workshop.
The workshop addressed CSR from multiple perspectives
CSR endeavors, as understood that CSR makes a significant contribution to address issues such as poverty, growth inclusion, and environmental degradation. This involves both partnership with CSO and changes in public policy. It is therefore imperative to track the Millennium Development Goals, MDG in the national context.
MDG ensures environmental sustainability, and developing global partnership for development. There are some important steps has been undertaken by the govt, which will help in achieving the MDG. The isolated efforts could not yield effective results in the grass roots. It actively encourages a participatory approach with representatives from the govt, CSO's and private enterprises to join hands and work towards a common goal. The workshop addressed CSR from perspectives, as it is the need of the hour as we progress forward in the development. Many development projects indeed are bringing positive changes, but the need is huge and every development activities call for a well planned holistic approach.
Social Capital, one of the biggest asset
Dr. Shikha Triphathi, faculty member of BIRD, while imparting training to us on Social Capital, divided the participants from Corporates, and NGO's, into two groups, instructing the former team to approach the later for partnership in implementing some awareness programs in villages. Unexpectedly, the conversation between the two groups took the shape of verbal boxing, well this was just an exercise given to us in the classroom, but a real lesson learnt.
Despite good intentions of both the groups, they could not unite to do a welfare program for poor villagers. The reason, was that the invisible ego which surfaced every time, corporate group posed as big providers, not knowing what, where and how to provide… and NGO group ending up feeling hurt. In real life, outside this classroom, it's a hard fact that it happens almost everyday, and we deprive so many people from our expertise and resources.
Lesson learnt
Those assets in form of community as endless potential development which is sustainable, is regarded as the social capital. It is a mutual relationship to develop a win-win situation to bring a sustainable development.
Thus every step towards it has to ensure empowerment, true empowerment means ownership, and ownership means freedom. Out of the box thinking is required, change of mindset has to come in the partnership way.
Concluding session
The workshop on CSR in such a diverse manner aimed to initiate the institutional development on global, national, regional and local levels with the respective to develop a tight network and partnership down the grassroots, it was an event of its own, and provide a great learning platform for all participants.
Mr. R.K Das, the Jt.Director, BIRD, suggested on introducing a session on communication, as effective communication strategies builds up winning relationships.
S.K Chatterjee, the Director, BIRD at the closing session of the five day workshop, said, “Every development effort should be focused towards the ultimate financial inclusion, which means bringing all into the mainstream economic growth.”
Partnership is the key!
Acknowledgement
SAFE gratefully thanks;
- P. Mohanaiah, Chief General Manager, NABARD, Kolkata
- S.K Chatterjee, Director, BIRD
- R.K. DAS, Jt. Director, BIRD
- V.V Nemlekar (Program Director)
- R.R Kulkarni (CAB, co-ordunator)
- Dr.Rohit Kumar, Tata Motors
- R.P Bansal, CIMAP
- Esteemed faculty members and resource persons.
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