Ludhiana is often dubbed as the Manchester of India for its prominent textile industry. The city famous for its shawls and stoles satisfies the demands of major domestic as well as international brands. The city’s role in the supply chain of many companies makes it a desirable location for CSR investments.
Top Companies for CSR in Ludhiana
PepsiCo India
PepsiCo India announced last week that the company has extended its Biochar Initiative, a pilot crop residue management program, to the Fatehgarh Sahib and Ludhiana districts of Punjab as a potential solution to address the pressing issue of stubble burning in the northern states of India. This initiative works with farmers in Punjab to better manage harvest residue by using furnaces known as retort kilns to produce biochar fertilizer through a process called pyrolysis.
According to Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), stubble burning in Punjab released 6.8 million tonnes of greenhouse gases and particulate matter between September 15 and November 2, 2022. Biochar production and usage has the potential to reduce GHG emissions significantly compared to other forms of disposal such as heaping while improving soil health and water retention, claims PepsiCo India.
PepsiCo further shared that their Biochar Initiative aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 2 (Zero Hunger). Through these efforts, the company also aims to improve the per hectare crop yields for small and marginal farmers while contributing to global efforts to mitigate climate change.
BPCL signs MoU with Tata Memorial Centre
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), a ‘Maharatna’ and a Fortune Global 500 Company, announced earlier this month that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Tata Memorial Centre to provide CSR aid to Homi Baba Cancer Hospital, Sangrur and Homi Baba Cancer Hospital & Research Centre, Mullanpur a unit of Tata Memorial Centre in Punjab.
The MoU signing ceremony took place at an event in Ludhiana in the presence of Shri Sukhmal Jain, Director Marketing of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited and Doctors of Homi Baba Cancer Research Hospital.
In an effort towards improving health and community development, BPCL announced that they will be funding and investing INR 1,84,87,300/- towards the hospitals to procure hi-tech surgical equipment to enable advance cancer treatments which will be made readily available to the underprivileged population at low costs.
Bharti Foundation
Bharti foundation, the philanthropic arm of Bharti Enterprises, commissioned Sattva to conduct an Impact Assessment Study of its ‘Satya Bharti Abhiyan’ program based in Amritsar and Ludhiana districts of Punjab. Launched in August 2014, the program contributed to the Government of India’s National Mission of ‘Swachh Bharat.’ 32,149 households and institutions were provided toilets free of cost, benefitting over 2,19,872 people. Separate toilets for girls in 14 government schools in rural Ludhiana and 37 separate ladies’ toilets in police stations in the districts were also constructed. The project was completed in December 2021.
The impact assessment study covered a sample size of 1,014 toilets and was undertaken during 2021-22. Mamta Saikia, CEO Bharti Foundation handed, over the Impact evaluation report of the Satya Bharti Abhiyan, to Sh. Vipul Ujwal, Special Secretary, Department of Water Supply and Sanitation, Government of Punjab.
Key findings of the Impact assessment report are:
>98% of the respondents saved time as they did not have to travel to far distances anymore for the purpose of relieving themselves.
>39% of the respondents used the extra time to help with household work whereas 48% of the respondents engaged in productive work.
>84% of the respondents said that the initiative benefitted women. It helps them feel safer and assists in utilizing the saved time in productive activities.
>93% of the respondents believed that the program helped with children’s safety.
>78% households noticed a decrease in the frequency of them falling sick after construction of the toilets.
>32% fall in health expenditure due to improved sanitation and hygiene practices, from an average of Rs. 4,788 to Rs. 3,249 a year.
ReNew Power
In order to help tackle air pollution in the national capital caused because of Stubble burning in the neighbouring states, ReNew Power joined hands with CII Foundation in 2018-19, to work with around 1000 farmers in 7 villages, covering 7000 acres of farmland in Raikot block, Ludhiana district in Punjab.
Key components of the project included behaviour change interventions involving village-level community interactions and campaigning for farmer awareness; building, developing and implementing a participatory village-level action plan.
Supporting the adoption of tools and technologies and entrepreneurial ventures for in-situ and ex-situ processing of farm straw was another aspect. A total of 24 machines like happy seeder, rotavator with a seed drill, cutter cum spreader were provided as part of the project. These machines were handed over to the local farmer producer organization (FPO) for operation and maintenance.
The FPO will collect a nominal hiring charge (as decided in consultation with farmers, and considering the market rate) that will be used for the repair and maintenance of these machines. The creation of farmers’ knowledge and capacity on sustainable cropping systems involved farm level demonstrations and training. Village Nigrani Committee is a team of volunteers established to monitor the cases of stubble burning, if any, and undertake immediate community level remedial measures to stop it.
