Recently the Finance Ministry has proposed to do away with criminal penalty on company officials for failing to meet their spending obligations on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). While this may be good for corporates it leaves those who deserve to share some of the bounty from the profits of the companies at a disadvantage. Many companies operate their mining activities in areas that also have some of the poorest living in them. The CSR is meant to alleviate the pain and poverty of such people. Thankfully the penalty on not meeting the mandated 2% spending on CSR remains and it is critical that it is complied with honestly and willingly, rather than through compulsion.
The move to introduce this penalty was necessitated because over 40% of entities weren’t complying with the CSR requirement, with about one fifth of the companies not spending any money for CSR. This reflects a lack of proper management policies which either didn’t exist in these companies or they were flouting then guidelines since no stern action was forthcoming from the government. Now, the companies have been given five years as the government feels it’s high time that they share responsibility as stated in the Companies Act.
Interestingly India was one of the first to implement CSR, which is a self-regulating business model that helps a company be socially accountable, to itself, its stakeholders, and the public. By practicing CSR, also called corporate citizenship companies can be conscious of the kind of impact these are having on all aspects of society including economic, social, and environmental.
Companies with a net worth of Rs 500 crore or more or turnover of over Rs 1000 crore or net profit of over Rs 5 crore have to spend at least 2% of the average net profit made during the three immediate preceding financial years on CSR activity. So far, they were required to report it to shareholders, but now the government has decided to crack the whip and ensure compliance.
The CSR concept can take many forms depending on the company and industry and through programmes, philanthropy, and volunteer efforts, businesses can benefit society while boosting their own brands. However, most companies don’t give the priority needed. It is generally agreed that CSR is of great value for the community where the factory and/or unit is established and such activities can help forge a stronger bond between employees, the corporation and society.
In this aspect, Meghalaya hardly gets any CSR except from Lafarge Mining Corporation as there are no large corporates operating here. Perhaps the corporatisation of coal mines will rake in much needed CSR which can be put into environmental rejuvenation programmes.
