An online survey by Girem states that when it comes to corporate social responsibility (CSR), Puneites feel the corporate sector is not contributing enough for development of the city. Some feel that apart from funds, quality time too needs to be spent on these activities. Also, there is a need for setting up a committee that will help enable joint projects between various firms. Pune citizens speak up.

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

Any development work needs quality time Contributing some amount of your earnings towards a social activity is a noble act, which should be done by everybody. In fact, corporate houses must show interest in tackling one national issue out of hundreds that plague our society. If each one from the corporate sector devotes their time, funds and infrastructure to a single cause then better outcome can be achieved. Any social or civic development work needs quality time besides funds. If the CSR modules are integrated with the government system then only issues can be tackled in a proper and efficient manner.—Shantilal Mutha, founder president, BJS Foundation

IT firms have made no contribution to cityCorporate houses have not done any substantial work anywhere in the city. I have not seen any big company step forward and take initiative to complete any major development project work in the city. Merely beautifying chowks and then displaying the corporate’s name is part of advertising; it cannot be called development work. Especially, the IT firms that have flourished in Pune have not made any contribution to the city. These IT companies get special subsidies like concessions in octroi and FSI, but they give back nothing to the city in terms of civic development work, which is part of their corporate social responsibility.  —Vijay Kumbhar, president, Surajya Sangharsh Samiti

Critical issues are neglected by firmsOnly a handful of corporate firms are actually living up to their commitment towards society. In fact, NGOs are the ones that are  tackling various social causes. I also feel that the corporate firms should go beyond just funding activities. They should make their contributions more sustainable and not just reduce it to a one time activity. Perhaps a sustainable CSR model is needed. If all the firms join together and plan their activities, contributing to various aspects of social causes and coordinating between them, then better results can be achieved. The problem is that various critical issues are neglected by majority of firms. —Kadambari Lokhande, sociology student

Our company has carried out various social drives in city The claim made by the survey that corporate firms in the city are not contributing enough towards society and neglecting their corporate social responsibilities is to a large extent flawed. Through the Mahratta Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture’s (MCCIA) wing, Janwani, many individual companies are involved in various CSR activities. As far as KPIT Cummins is concerned, the last one year has been very good in terms of CSR activities. Our biggest achievement has been the solid waste management programme that we carried out in Katraj where 95% garbage has been collected and segregated. The drive has been so successful that the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has asked us to carry out similar activities in thirty wards. Apart from that we have contributed heavily to the traffic and transportation department of the city. More recently, KPIT Cummins made a vital contribution to help preserve heritage sites in the city. Many firms too are carrying out their CSR activities sincerely, so the survey findings hold no significance. —Ravi Pandit, CEO, KPIT Cummins

Committee should be set up to help firms work togetherI don’t know about other companies, but Cybage is contributing a lot to the CSR activities. In fact, we have a budget allocated for the same. Also, we have two full-time CSR employees who exclusively work in this department. We also have various volunteers who help us carry out our CSR activities. We recently carried out village adoption programmes, which have been a huge success. Even de-addiction camps in slums have been carried out. Our recent initiatives like Cybage Asha and Cybage Khushboo helped us in reaching out to the deprived children who want to pursue education. The reason for the survey’s lopsided finding is because there isn’t enough coordination between companies to showcase their CSR activities. A committee should be formed that will enable joint projects so that various companies can work together for a common social cause.—Deepak Nathani, COO, Cybage Software

Corporates can definitely make a difference to societyPune has grown into a large metropolitan city and many people in their own little ways are trying to make a difference to society despite various limitations. Far too many problems have grown and proper infrastructure is needed for the city. Yes, I agree that corporate houses in Pune can certainly do a lot more than what they are doing right now. For example, through Pune Municipal Corporation, Janwani, corporates in city can contribute towards development works in the city. The only drawback is that the civic administration is very slow in taking decisions. The popularly known ‘Pune Model’ conceived by CII, which resulted in making the city free from load shedding, was an innovative model that no other city in India has.—Pradeep Bhargava, chairman, CII, western region