Corporate Social Responsibility programs have an essential role in today’s economy to ensure that corporations are able to give something back to society while making sure that the company’s profits aren’t compromised. CSR ensures that the company provides in the best possible manner to itself, its stakeholders, and the public at large an opportunity to help in projects that could help massively in the growth of society, making the companies activities inseparable towards the cohesive development of the society.
With the government under the new Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman expanding the scope of corporate spending under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) norms, we can see the CSR funding being utilized more efficiently now on. The new standard has widened the scope of CSR activities in a manner such that companies can now contribute towards research across various fields such as science, technology, medicine. Besides, CSR funds can be spent on incubators funded by the Centre or state or any state-owned companies, which wasn’t the case before.
IIT (ISM) can be the hub of CSR activities, with companies funding research and development projects in the institute, as well as contributing towards developing technology incubator.
Integration with established private enterprises in critical sectors will provide the required impetus for a future-ready economy, and thrust towards research-based innovation is undoubtedly beneficial in this respect.