case study of csr in india

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The Complete CSR Report of Mahindra and Mahindra Limited

Mahindra and mahindra limited, the flagship company of the mahindra group is a mobility products and farm solutions provider. the company has grown rapidly since its inception in 1947. it currently offers a wide range of products and solutions ranging from suvs to electric vehicles, pickups, commercial vehicles, tractors, two-wheelers and construction equipment., mahindra focuses its corporate social responsibility (csr) initiatives to drive positive and sustainable change in building resilient communities. its core purpose states, “we will challenge conventional thinking and through innovative use of all our resources, drive positive change in the lives of our stakeholders and communities across the world, to enable them to rise”. it is amply evident that csr is integral to and at the core of the company’s philosophy., the company’s csr work is directed mainly at the development of girls, youth and farmers who are supported through initiatives in education, health and the environment. below is the video that highlights the csr initiatives of mahindra and mahindra limited., mahindra and mahindra limited has been diligent in its csr spending. since the fy 2014-15, when the companies were mandated to spend to per cent of their net profits on csr, mahindra and mahindra has been spending the prescribed amount for csr without fail. in fy 2019-20, the company exceeded its csr spending to 126.6 crores from its prescribed amount of 106.56 crores. below is the graph that highlights the csr spending of mahindra and mahindra ltd. of the last five years..

1. Mahindra and Mahindra CSR

For mahindra and mahindra ltd., responsible business practices include being responsible for its business processes, products, engaging in responsible relations with employees, customers and the community. hence for the company, corporate social responsibility goes beyond just adhering to statutory and legal compliances and creates social and environmental value for its key stakeholders., the company implements its csr projects either directly through its esops structure where the mahindra employees directly implement the csr programmes or through implementing partners which include ngos having an established track record of at least 3 years in carrying on the specific activity. the main implementation partners the company works with are the mahindra foundation, the kc mahindra education trust, tech mahindra foundation and naandi foundation., 2. csr policy, mahindra and mahindra limited in line with its core purpose has set its csr vision to focus its efforts in critical constituencies that contribute to nation-building and the economy. in this manner, mahindra and mahindra limited aims to enable its stakeholders and communities to rise., the company aims to focus its csr efforts within the constituencies of girls, youth & farmers through programmes designed in the domains of education, health and environment. apart from making contributions to its corporate foundation’s/trust’s projects (kc mahindra education trust and mahindra foundation), the company may also make contributions towards the corpus of the said foundations / trusts subject to the approval of the board. the company may also make contributions to ‘think tanks’ 2 for projects permitted under schedule vii of the act., the board level corporate social responsibility committee of the company is responsible for monitoring the csr policy from time to time. the csr committee is responsible for approving and recommending to the board, the projects or programmes to be undertaken, the modalities of execution and implementation schedule from time to time. apart from recommending and approving budgets for project implementation, the committee is also responsible for instituting a monitoring mechanism to track the progress of each project., 2.1 csr committee, the members of the board level csr committee of mahindra and mahindra limited include dr vishakha n. desai (chairperson & independent director), mr anand g. mahindra, dr pawan goenka and mr vikram singh mehta (independent director)., in addition to this, the company has set up a csr council chaired by the president – group hr and communications & member of the group executive board. this comprises senior management executives from all sectors, senior csr executives and a csr advisor. the csr council implements the csr strategy and reports to the board level csr committee., 3. project nanhi kali, project nanhi kali, which translates to a ‘little bud’ in hindi, supports the education of underprivileged girls in india. designed to support girls from low-income families to complete ten years of formal schooling, the flagship csr project of mahindra and mahindra limited has impacted the lives of over 450,000 girls (called nanhi kalis) from underserved communities across the country..

Currently, the project supports the education of 1,74,681 Nanhi Kalis across 6,001 academic support centres, in 9 states. The project provides 360-degree support to girls from Class 1 to 10, including two hours of free after-school remedial classes every day, and an annual school supplies kit to enable them to attend school with dignity. In addition to this, the project has extended its support to 78,437 girls in secondary schools by enabling them access to digital tablets which are pre-loaded with smart educational content. The Nanhi Kali team also works to sensitise parents and communities on the importance of educating girls and to become their collective guardians.

In order to ensure that underprivileged girls continue their education at this critical time, the nanhi kali team has doubled its efforts by investing in providing quality digital education to girls, so that they are equipped to face the post-covid world. every girl in the nanhi kali project receives holistic support including:, academic support and access to an adaptive learning software via digital tablets: daily academic support is provided at nanhi kali academic support centres which are set up within government schools and operate for 2 hours before/after school. in partnership with leading edtech organisation, educational initiatives every nanhi kali at these centres receive access to a personalized, adaptive learning platform called mindspark. this widely recognized software has been proven to significantly improve learning outcomes amongst users. through mindspark, nanhi kalis will learn maths, their local language and english from class 1-10, and additionally, science from class 6-10. powered by artificial intelligence, mindspark will match instructions to the learning level and pace of each nanhi kali, ensuring that she learns with understanding. the software will be pre-loaded onto digital tablets, allowing access to quality education even in remote locations., trained women tutors: nanhi kali tutors (called community associates) are women from local communities who facilitate learning and mentor the nanhi kalis through their schooling, and also engage with parents/community stakeholders to create girl-friendly ecosystems., sports curriculum: a professionally designed sports curriculum has been built into the programme, giving nanhi kalis the opportunity to participate in sport and fitness activities regularly., school supplies kit: a kit including a school bag, stationery and a pullover/raincoat is provided to every nanhi kali annually. with 45.6% of teenage girls in india still following unhygienic menstrual practices, a 12-month supply of branded sanitary napkins is included in each kit to help the girl attend school with dignity., in 2019, mahindra and mahindra limited was awarded at the national csr awards ceremony, organised by the ministry of corporate affairs for ‘national priority area education for project nanhi kali’., in 2018, nanhi kali in association with mahindra group launched a new campaign focusing on the education of a girl child titled ‘ladki haath se nikal jaayegi’. the campaign aims to dispel the misconceptions around girl child education by taking on a fresh view of the phrase with the campaign. the campaign has been recognised with several accolades. it won gold in the special abby (gender sensitive) category at goafest in 2019..

4. Mahindra Pride Schools

The mahindra pride school is a unique 90-day livelihood training programme for youths from socially and financially disadvantaged communities. with a 100% placement record, the nine schools in pune, patna, chandigarh, srinagar, hyderabad, varanasi and three in chennai, trained and placed 6,045 students in fy 2019-20. till date, 39,280 youths have been trained through this programme..

A network of 200+ corporates, many of which have been repeat recruiters of the graduates of MPS. This is a validation of the quality of training provided at MPS. The alumni of MPS who are employed with different companies serve as role models in their community. Active alumni clubs regularly send referrals to MPS and at least 30-40% of a batch comprises referrals. The alumni also act as peer leaders and mentors to students undergoing training at MPS, motivating them to overcome their challenging circumstances

In fy 2019-20, an additional 1,01,391 students were trained through 2,374 mahindra pride classrooms conducted through itis, polytechnic and arts & science colleges in 16 states. the mahindra pride classrooms provide 40-120 hours of training to final-year students on topics that include english speaking, life skills, aptitude tests, interviews, group discussions and digital literacy., 5. project hariyali, project hariyali is the green initiative of mahindra and mahindra wherein the company aims at adding 1 million trees to india’s green cover every year. the project, launched in 2007, has today become a movement among the company’s employees, customers, vendors and dealers, as they undertake tree plantation drives across the country..

In FY 2019-20, Mahindra & Mahindra planted 1.32 million trees, taking the total tally to 17.93 million trees. Of these, 10.78 million trees have been planted in the Araku Valley, which besides greening the environment, also provides livelihood support to tribal farmers growing coffee in the region.

In 2020, the project was adjudged with india’s best csr project in the environment and sustainability category at the indo french chamber of commerce and industries (ifcci) csr conclave. the honour recognises the project’s contribution and commitment to providing nature-based solutions to address the issues related to climate change..

The project was also featured in the 2020 edition of the Limca Book of Records for ‘Most trees planted’.

6. integrated watershed management programme, integrated watershed management programme is a project implemented in a private public partnership (ppp) model with the government of madhya pradesh in bhopal, and in hatta with the national bank for agriculture and rural development (nabard), to increase the groundwater table of the region., implemented in 48 villages (35 villages in bhopal and 13 villages in hatta), this project is aimed at helping to increase agricultural productivity and improve the overall standard of living, benefitting 38,447 people residing in these villages., the project was accorded with the honour of national priority area agriculture and rural development for integrated watershed management programme in mp at national csr awards organised by the ministry of corporate affairs in 2019., 7. saving lives with safer roads, m&m ltd. is partnering with savelife foundation and maharashtra state road development corporation limited (msrdc) to create india’s first zero fatality corridor (zfc) on the mumbai-pune expressway through interventions in 4es i.e. engineering, enforcement, education and emergency response., the zfc is a pioneering attempt to build a replicable model for road safety that can be implemented on any road. the aim of the initiative is to reduce the number of road crash fatalities on the mumbai-pune expressway (mpew) from an annual average of 140 to 0 by the year 2020, which marks the end of the un decade of action for road safety., 8. employee social options, a long-running employee volunteering programme, esops is where mahindra employees channelise their time and skills to address the needs of local communities. in fy 2019-20, 22,877 m&m employee volunteers contributed 1,63,818 person-hours towards giving back to society..

9. COVID-19 Relief

Resilience was tested at the end of the fy 2019-20, marked by the covid-19 crisis. the crisis is testing the world’s capability to respond to a pandemic at a time when the world is already grappling with acute inequalities based on gender, class, access to livelihood opportunities, amongst others. with the socio-economic impacts of the pandemic hitting vulnerable and marginalised groups particularly hard, there was a need for businesses to step up to support communities in need., swiftly responding to this, mahindra and mahindra extended its support to the efforts of the government machinery by responding to the crying need for products required to fight the covid crisis. accordingly, a decision was taken to use the company’s manufacturing facilities to make personal protection equipment e.g. low-cost innovative ventilators, face masks and face shields., further, the company set up a covid-19 relief fund under the aegis of mahindra foundation, to provide relief to those most severely affected by the pandemic e.g. small businesses and traders, workers in the supply chain, and daily wage labourers..

Mahindra and Mahindra also contributed Rs. 20 crores to the ‘Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund’ (PM CARES FUND). Through these initiatives, the company has not only provided support to the Government agencies but has reached out to a large section of the poor and vulnerable by providing immediate relief.

Mahindra and mahindra addresses the core developmental and environmental challenges through its csr initiatives. its usp lies in the impactfulness of its csr programmes which have been recognised time and again at various platforms. in 2019, mahindra and mahindra limited was accorded with the award for ‘excellence in csr’ at the national csr awards organised by the ministry of corporate affairs, government of india., related articles more from author.

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Resolving ‘Grand Challenges’: India's Mandatory CSR in Practice

The Equal Pillars of Sustainability

ISBN : 978-1-80382-066-8 , eISBN : 978-1-80382-065-1

ISSN : 2043-0523

Publication date: 18 April 2022

In recent times the government has emerged as an enabling and empowering facilitator promoting the adoption of corporate social responsibility (CSR) by businesses to leverage economic competitiveness and growth. India provides a unique context to explore the mandated role of government in relation to CSR specifically within the context of understanding its effective use to resolve grand challenges which the country is facing at present. Grand challenges are complex social, economic and environmental problems which require innovative and collaborative solutions. In this chapter we explore extant secondary data, related to CSR and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to examine whether mandatory CSR implementation which has been unfolding in India over the last few years has been effective in addressing India's grand challenges. Specifically, it focuses on the role of the Indian government, at the national and state levels, in directing CSR activities towards the SDGs.

• Sustainable development goals
• Governments
• Governmentality
• Grand challenges

Ray, S. and Beddewela, E. (2022), "Resolving ‘Grand Challenges’: India's Mandatory CSR in Practice", Crowther, D. and Seifi, S. (Ed.) The Equal Pillars of Sustainability ( Developments in Corporate Governance and Responsibility, Vol. 17 ), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 225-240. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2043-052320220000017011

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2022 by Emerald Publishing Limited

Introduction

Grand challenges have been defined as ‘large unresolved problems, which affect large populations, thus extending their impacts beyond the boundaries of a single community’ ( Ferraro, Etzion, & Gehman, 2015 , p. 365). Amongst the most prominent grand challenges are: climate change, water scarcity, poverty alleviation and the safeguarding of human rights. The business contributions towards resolving these ‘grand challenges’ was reiterated by Ban Ki-Moon, in his foreword to the 2015 Millennium Development Goals Report, emphasizing the need to ‘deliver on our shared responsibility to put an end to poverty’ ( UN, 2015 ).

Businesses can play a crucial role in resolving grand challenges, primarily by engaging in value creation through their traditional business activities ( Frynas, 2008 ). They could likewise go beyond their traditional role of economic value creation in finding sustainable solutions for grand challenges, such as alleviating poverty ( Frynas, 2008 ). This latter role of business in development as a non-market player, where it engages pro-actively in addressing and potentially re-dressing grand challenges (for example, conducting projects aimed at providing water, health and education or basic infrastructure), can also be argued to be a crucial element of their corporate social responsibilities (CSR). Although the adoption of CSR by business has been steadily progressive, there are fewer insights into the developmental impacts of CSR ( Newell & Frynas, 2007 ).

In recent times, governments too have emerged as an enabling and empowering actor, promoting the adoption and implementation of CSR at the domestic ( Snider, Halpern, Rendon, & Kidalov, 2013 ) and global governance levels ( Giessen, Burns, Sahide, & Wibowo, 2016 ). Governments participate in voluntary CSR programs, providing technical expertise, administrative and financial support to such programs ( Gulbrandsen, 2014 ). This stream of literature informs us that through their participation governments shape the emergence, diffusion and implementation of corporate CSR practices. Findings also highlight the importance of state and non-state actors' contributions to how corporations' CSR activities are articulated. Although influences exerted by governments remain as yet one of the most significant ( Schrempf-Stirling, Palazzo, & Phillips, 2016 ), empirical scholarly work on governments' role in CSR remains relatively underexplored ( Dentchev, van Balen, & Haezendonck, 2015 ), specifically in relation to developing countries.

This chapter aims to understand the role of the government in resolving ‘grand challenges’ at a country-level through the use of policies promoting greater corporate involvement in socio-economic development. It poses the research question ‘Can government policy interventions in CSR enable the resolution of grand challenges in a developing country?’ examining it from the context of India.

The chapter contributes to the literature in a two-fold manner: first, we contribute to the ongoing literature on government involvement in CSR ( Knudsen & Brown, 2015 ; Midttun, 2005 ) providing empirical insights on the extent of governmental influence in corporations' CSR adoption and implementation of CSR from a developing country standpoint. Second, building upon existing CSR governmentality literature (e.g. Vallentin & Murillo, 2012 ; Vallentin, 2015 ), we highlight the workings of governmental policies in a selected institutional field considered by some to be an important precursor towards clarifying organizational level strategy in general ( Peng, 2002 ) and corporate political activities ( Frynas & Stephens, 2014 ) in particular.

Review of Literature

Corporate social responsibility and corporate community involvement.

Carroll (1979 , p. 500) considers CSR to encompass ‘the economic, legal, ethical and discretionary (philanthropic) expectations that society has of organisations at a given point in time’. CSR in developing countries is primarily about firm-level engagement in Corporate Community Involvement (CCI). Corporate Community Involvement (CCI) can be described as corporations' involvement in societal concerns with the aim to improve the socio-economic issues faced by societies in which they are operating ( Muthuri, Moon, & Idemudia, 2012 ). Although there is no single definition of the community development, the United Nations (UN) defines it as ‘a process where community/society member come together to take collective actions and generate solutions to common problem’ (Cited in McEwan, Mawdsley, Banks, & Scheyvens, 2017 ). It can also be described as firm activities directed towards supporting community development ( Banks, Scheyvens, McLennan, & Bebbington, 2016 ).

In engaging in CCI, organizations use their resources (people, expertise, surplus products, premises, equipment and financial resources) to address problems in the communities in which they operate ( Grayson, 1993 ). Literature has also identified various modes for the implementation of CCI, such as: corporate donations ( Saiia, Carroll, & Buchholtz, 2003 ; Waddock, 2008 ), cause-related marketing ( Demetriou, Papasolomou, & Vrontis, 2010 ; Baghi, Rubaltelli, & Tedeschi, 2009 ; Varadarajan & Menon, 1988 ), corporate partnerships ( Seitanidi & Crane, 2009 ), and corporate social investments or capacity building ( Nwankwo, Phillips, & Tracey, 2007 ; Warhurst, 2001 ). These different modes of CCI are not mutually exclusive and companies tend to use more than one mode to implement their CCR practices ( Muthuri et al., 2012 ). However, CCI practices within companies have more recently been transformed from a voluntary activity to a key strategic management tool ( Brammer & Millington, 2004 ). Research has confirmed that if managed effectively, CCI practices would assist organizations to retain and gain customers ( Simmons & Becker-Olsen, 2006 ), foster a sense of commitment from employees ( De Gilder, Schuyt, & Breedijk, 2005 ; Zappalà, 2004 ) and increase corporate reputation or image as a caring business ( Arendt & Brettel, 2010 ; Brammer & Pavelin, 2005 ; Gardberg, 2017 ; Hillenbrand & Money, 2007 ) and develop political ties ( Beddewela & Fairbrass, 2016 ; Wang & Qian, 2011 ).

Governmental Involvement in CSR

The question of whether corporations’ CSR practices should be self-regulated through voluntary and discretionary CSR ( Carroll, 1979 ; Wartick & Mahon, 1994 ) or whether it should be mandatory, i.e. regulated by governmental institutions ( Bendell, Miller, & Wortmann, 2011 ; Deegan & Shelly, 2014 ) has been ever present in the wider CSR literature. There is a tendency however in the CSR literature to denigrate the influence of government on businesses' CSR practices or even exclude such influences due to the need for CSR to be deemed as voluntary ( McWilliams & Siegel, 2001 ) and thus self-regulated. However, what is evident from literature so far has been that businesses' CSR practices are being influenced by multiple stakeholders ( Park & Ghauri, 2015 ), most importantly by governments ( Zhao, 2012 ). Governmental interest in CSR stems primarily from the fact that the socio-developmental values of CSR typically align with their overall public policy agenda of states, even as CSR helps to alleviate societal problems ( Tencati, Perrini, & Pogutz, 2004 ).

The global governance literature ascribes that due to the externalities of globalization, the role and effectiveness of governments in governance is in decline. The rise of globalization however does not necessarily imply a decline in governments' ability to shape the conduct of corporations; rather, it reflects a shift in the governance logic by states from the conventional hierarchical governance model via regulations to a more subtle form of governance ( Wood & Wright, 2015 ). As such, governments are still in the business of providing institutional contexts for corporations to function ( Kobrin, 2009 ; Ramamurti, 2003 ; Schrempf-Stirling et al., 2016 ), informing their corporate activities and societal responsibilities, through legislations and public policies.

Customarily, government contributions to CSR manifests directly through regulatory institutions for CSR and indirectly through the mobilization of market mechanisms. With the latter, government contribution is perceived to be collaborative, facilitating corporations' CSR actions through soft instruments ( Albareda, Lozano, & Ysa, 2007 ). More specifically, governmental public policies act as instruments for governmental influence within this voluntary CSR space. Fox, Ward and Howard (2002) present a framework which examines the ‘role’ of the public sector or the government in facilitating CSR.

As shown in Table 1 , four principle public sector roles in supporting a CSR agenda within a specific country consist of: mandating, facilitating, partnering and endorsing. In their mandating role, governments not only define the minimum standards of behaviour in relation to all aspects of CSR, but in relation to CCI, would determine ‘mandatory’ corporate contributions towards CCI projects in the country, usually through legislative changes. In enabling their facilitator role, the primary objective of the government would be acting as a catalyst for social and environment improvements, thus stimulating corporate engagement in CCI, but without imperative regulation. For example, a government can demonstrate its support for specific CSR policies by incorporating it into its public procurement or public sector management practices (e.g. Snider et al., 2013 ; Steurer, Martinuzzi, & Margula, 2012 ). As a partner, the government simultaneously could act as either convenors, participants or facilitators of specific partnerships. The government's endorsement role involves it leading by example and providing substantive political support for CSR ( Knudsen & Brown, 2015 ). Using political rhetoric and informational campaigns, it would engage in raising CSR awareness and promoting constructive corporate ethical practices. We adopt the above classification of Fox et al.’s (2002) , as it is clearly indicative of the manifestations of governmental influence within the CSR sphere, specifically focussing on the four roles as manifested through the secondary data in relation to the CCI in India.

Public Sector Engagement in CSR.

Source: Adapted from Fox et al. (2002) .

Furthermore, while mandating, facilitation and partnering role of governments can be argued to be forms of hard power in that they induce corporations' CSR compliance through either threats and/or inducements, endorsement reflects governmental soft power – the ability to co-opt corporations to adopt specific CSR actions without legislative inducement or financial support. Soft power refers to ‘the ability to exercise influence [power] on others through means of attraction rather than coercion’ ( Nye Jr, 2004 , p. 10). It is a relational form of power in that the ability to influence stem from attraction, admiration and respect of particular actors ( Gallarotti, 2011 ; Nye Jr, 2004 ). Soft power is based on the notion that actors are autonomous and yet interdependent of one another ( Kearn, 2011 ). By aligning our analytical classification of public instruments in CSR in relation to power, we anticipate that the institutional environment will inform the type and effectiveness of CSR public instruments employed by governments. The use of public policies to stimulate businesses to engage in CSR has so far been investigated mainly in relation to context-specific studies limited to developed countries (See Albareda, Lozano, Tencati, Midttun, & Perrini, 2008 ; Albareda et al., 2006 , 2007 ), or from a wider national governance perspective (See Gjolberg, 2009 ; Midttun, 2005 ).

However, existing research provides minimal insights in relation to the interactions which occur between businesses and governments in jurisdictions where institutional voids are prevalent. Thus, we focus on India, thereby focussing on a developing country which provides fresh insights into governmental involvement in CSR in a different political economy and a unique social configuration in which institutional frameworks that determine the rules of the game are ‘fragmented’, ‘unorganised’ and ‘uncoordinated’ ( Gond, Kang, & Moon, 2011 ).

Research Context: India

The Indian economy is poised to grow in the coming decades, relying on a resilient economy, investor-friendly government and a strong demographic dividend. However, India is one of the rare economies in world history which has managed to grow economically with limited benefit to its poorest ( Dreze & Sen, 2014 ). It faces multiple challenges in terms of health, education and other basic amenities. The country has the world's largest number of rural people without access to water ( WaterAid, 2018 ). Performance in other areas of human well-being like infant mortality, nutrition and hunger have put India in the 131st place in the 2016 UNDP human development report. Twenty-three percent of India's 1.2 billion strong population earns less than $1.25 daily and the country is ranked 130th among 188 countries in 2015 ( UNDP, 2015 ). In education, the country sees more than 50% of school students dropping out and even those who manage to continue struggle with basic skills ( Bansal & Bhattacharya, 2017 ).

CSR efforts in India can be traced back to the early parts of the twentieth century through the initiatives of private sector industrial groups like the Tata-s and several public sector companies ( Shah & Ray, 2014 ). Governmental push for CSR at a national level can be traced back to 2009 with the introduction of a Voluntary Guideline for CSR. This finally culminated at the provision of mandatory CSR in the Companies Act 2013 being effective from April 2014. CSR in the new discourse of the government sees corporations as delivery agents of public goods ( Besley & Ghatak, 2007 ). Mandatory CSR has brought in actions like increased budgetary allocation for CSR, partnerships with NGOs and several projects under CSR. While, on one hand, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs claims that ‘CSR should not be interpreted as a source for financing the resource gaps in government schemes’, the use of “corporate innovations and management skills in the delivery of ‘public goods’ is at the core of CSR implementation by companies” ( CSRBOX, 2018 ).

As such, the Indian context with its endemic presence of grand challenges, and the complexities surrounding the different roles that the national and state-level governments play in engendering CSR, provides rich secondary data for our study.

Addressing ‘Grand Challenges’ through CSR in India: National Level Performance

In 2017, India ranked 116th among 157 countries reported by the Global SDG Index that was prepared to measure the performance of countries on their way to achieve the SDGs by 2030. India also had a mixed performance in terms of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that were framed in 2000 by UN member states to improve several development parameters including health, education, poverty and sanitation. For example, India could not achieve the MDG targets with respect to primary school enrolment, gender inequality, child mortality and sanitation ( UNDP, 2015 ). In 2017, India conducted a voluntary national review on the implementation of SDGs by the National Institution for Transforming India ( NITI Aayog, 2017 ) which identified that the SDGs of focus for India are – SDG 1: End Poverty in All its Forms Everywhere; SDG2: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture; SDG3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages; SDG5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls; SDG9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation; SDG 14: Conserve and sustainable use the oceans, seas and marine resources and SDG17: Revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.

While the national government claims improvement over time across several of these goals, in absolute terms several challenges show up: more than 20% of the Indian population being below poverty line; 36.3% of households without access to sanitation facilities; 61.6% of children under five having stunted growth; 64.3% of children under five years being underweight; 38% of children between 12–23 months not getting immunization; 30.2% women being illiterate; 56.2% households not having access to clean fuel ( NITI Ayog, 2017 ). Clearly these remain India's grand challenges as seen through the lens of the SDGs. However, the entire report does not make any mention of the move by government to make corporations contribute to government plans and programmes through their CSR. This raises an issue as to whether India's approach to SDGs remain disconnected from its national government's role in strengthening CSR.

The SDG1 aims to Ensure significant mobilization of resources from a variety of sources to implement programmes and policies to end poverty in all its dimensions ( UN, 2018 ). Poverty has been one of the grand challenges for India. Poverty has an all-encompassing effect on a country's performance in education, health, infrastructure, quality of life and environment. India has made significant progress as an emerging and growing economy. Yet it has not been able to eliminate poverty and ensure equitable growth for its population in spite of several national level projects to do so. India's official data on poverty dates back to 2011–2012 and is based on two reports: The Tendulkar Committee report and the Rangarajan Committee report. Estimates based on daily income of Rs. 32.4 for rural India and Rs. 46.9 for urban India show that close to 363 million people remained below poverty line in 2011–2012. It is around the same time, the Indian national government commenced their implementation of ‘guidelines on CSR’, initially adopting a facilitating role through the provision of voluntary guidelines.

The Indian government has launched several national level projects, for example, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) that guarantees 100 days of work (unskilled labour) to rural poor; National Social Assistance Programme providing old age pension for poor senior citizens and also providing assistance to disabled persons; National Rural Livelihoods Mission, providing livelihood to rural people. However, the results of these national projects have not been able to provide a permanent solution, due to poor implementation and lack of adequate resources. For example, the MGNREGA scheme could not provide jobs to many people and even those who get such work found the money just enough to subsist. The old-age pension programme provides Rs. 200 ($2.5) per month from the Central government and the State government's addition to that is often paltry (e.g. a total of $4 in Madhya Pradesh) making it difficult for senior citizens to live a decent life.

Education is directly connected to SDG4 but also has impact on many of the other SDGs including providing health and work for all. The Indian education systems have been historically in a ‘state of mess’ with the privileged taking recourse to private arrangements while the poor were left at the mercy of the system ( Dreze & Sen, 2014 ). While overall figures for literacy and education have improved, across the country, some key challenges remain with the poor and vulnerable states of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh: shortage of schools, mainstreaming ‘out-of-school’ and dropout children, seasonal migration, weak monitoring and supervision ( Planning Commission, 2010 ). Thus the improvement of performance in education may not have been uniform and equal across the country.

Since education is the foundation for livelihood and economic security, poverty alleviation is also likely to suffer among the poor and marginalized. Over the last 70 years, independent India has spent around 4% of its GDP on education. Expert committees have pointed out that it is necessary to spend at least 6% of GDP on education to achieve the goal of universal education for all (See Table 2 ). Thus under-investment in education has been one of the recurring debates in the context of Indian development. Overall increase in literacy figures or gross enrolment ratios may not help India achieve its goal to provide education for all its children or establish itself as a hub of technology and innovation. Factors like corruption and low quality may impede the implementation of programmes and delivery of content. Corruption and political nexus in recruitment of teachers at the primary level, appointment of Vice Chancellors of universities at the higher education level, closure of business schools and engineering colleges, brain drain to developed countries, reducing budget for scientific research point at a deeper rot in the system that will require systemic changes. This is also reflected in the absence of Indian Universities in global rankings and its 99th position in education out of 149 countries ( Legatum Institute, 2017 ) much below its peers among the BRICS countries.

SDG4 and CSR in India (National Level).

Source: Adapted from media reports, government websites.

Companies across India are expected to spend an average of $1.4 billion annually on their CSR projects combined ( CSRBOX, 2018 ) over five years (2014–2019), while India's combined annual budget (national) for education stands at $11.49 billion. Spread over 5096 companies and at least as many CSR projects, it is unlikely that there will be significant ground-level impact in any of the areas related to education through the CSR initiatives of corporates. Early evidence on CSR implementation shows that most choices of projects and beneficiaries were ad-hoc ( Ray, 2013 ) though recent research shows that there is some natural and expected alignment between CSR and SDGs with approximately 80% of the top 50 Indian companies spending on health, education, work and economic growth ( Mulky, 2017 ) as part of their CSR. We posit that such alignment is post facto – i.e. more by chance than by choice.

Addressing ‘Grand Challenges’ through CSR in India: State-Level Performance

We further examine state-level engagement in the SDGs, by focussing on the state of Odisha in India (see Table 3 ). Odisha is located on the east coast of India and ranked 22 out of 23 Indian states in 2007–2008 ( UNDP, 2011 ). For several years, Odisha has been in the bottom quartile of development among Indian states though the local government has made significant progress in recent years. The state has also taken an active role in mobilizing and monitoring the CSR efforts of companies operating in Odisha through the formation of a state-level agency.

SDG4 and CSR in India (State Level – Odisha).

Source: Adapted from https://csr.odisha.gov.in/ accessed on and before 1 September 2018.

Government of Odisha has set up GO-CARE ( Government of Odisha, 2018 : http://csr.odisha.gov.in/ ) to co-ordinate the CSR activities in the state. The state has identified areas that require corporate intervention through CSR. However, we see a trend also evidenced at the national level, of districts having higher levels of industrial activity receiving a larger portion of the CSR fund while other districts being left out of such initiatives. Thirty-three per cent of districts received 90% of CSR funds in 2014–2015 across Odisha ( Government of Odisha, 2018a ). There is also no evidence of collaboration across government and various industry sectors to tackle a social or environmental issue that could possibly be a grand challenge for the region. Grand challenges often require such multi-stakeholder partnerships to solve complex issues.

In the area of education, Malkangiri district scored lowest and did not receive any CSR fund in 2014–2015 ( Government of Odisha, 2018a ). The top three projects in the district were construction of a medical college by a local mining company (at the behest of the local government) and construction of model schools by a steel and mining company. However, the state government's CSR discourse is completely silent on the SDGs or possible linkages between CSR and SDG. Further, there is no evidence that CSR projects are linked to state-level developmental issues. Rather they have been chosen independently by companies based on their competence areas ( Government of Odisha, 2018a ). Districts with tribal and marginalized people like Kandhamal, Nuapada and Deogarh received no CSR funding in health in 2014–2015 (See Table 4 , which shows the districtwise mapping of CSR spend in 2014–2015).

District Wise Education and Health Parameters and Corresponding CSR Expenditure in Odisha (State Level).

CSR project figures, including ongoing projects, are consolidated from 2014–2018.

Districts with below state level average in education or health are marked in italics.

Infant Mortality Rate (number of deaths of children under one year of age per 1000 birth) taken as health indicator.

Done by Mahanadi Coalfields Limited-public sector mining company.

Source: https://csr.odisha.gov.in/ accessed on and before 1 September 2018.

Our aim was to explore the role of the government in resolving ‘grand challenges’ at a country-level through the use of policies promoting greater corporate involvement in socio-economic development. Our findings reveal that while pro-active actions are being undertaken at the national and state levels, in addressing grand challenges such as poverty alleviation and education, mobilizing private and public sector resources under CSR is ineffective at present, even with the national government's adoption of a mandating role for itself in this regard ( Fox et al., 2002 ).

An example is the India Prime Minister requesting companies to consider using their CSR fund to open Ayurvedic 1 hospitals in each of India's 719 districts ( Indian Express, 2017 ), which is neither convergent nor coherent with India's major health issues like increasing inequality in healthcare access. On the ground, the mandating role of the government in relation to CSR also requires that it has the capability to manage the 10,000+ companies' (operating across multiple geographies within the country) contributions to CSR, in an effective manner towards addressing the SDGs. Thus, mandating corporate CSR efforts to governmental projects unrelated to their core competence may create a compliance mode of CSR similar to corporate responses to many other governmental regulations. Such government oversight may in reality limit the potential for corporate CSR to voluntarily and pro-actively resolve grand challenges that India is facing at present.

CSR in India is not only unique in the mandated role of its national government towards its provision, but is also remarkable in the size, spread and scope that CSR provides for the private sector in India to resolve its grand challenges. 10,000+ companies create a unique pool of economic, social, natural and human capital that has the potential to address the wicked problems of the day. In practice we see many axes of heterogeneity ( Jamali & Karam, 2018 ) that makes the idea and practice of CSR unique in India, not excluding corruption, weak institutions and multiplicity of actors. Our findings however show that there is a lack of congruence between the national and state-level governments and the ground-level CSR project implementation by corporates ( Table 4 ). In this regard, the role and relationship between state and corporations need to be one of collaborative co-creation and re-imagination of the business value chain instead of a top-down mandate as seen in India. Shared value creation can help both governments and companies to solve grand challenges and flourish in their own domain. Mandating CSR and coaxing companies to put their money in specified projects will lead to compliance-based CSR that may remain as ineffective as the voluntary one.

Grand challenges of the day have been scoped in the envisioning of the SDGs ( Ferraro et al., 2015 ). Sustainable development has been accepted as a key priority for 195 countries that signed the Paris accord. Climate change and greenhouse gas emission is strongly and positively linked to economic activities. While economic growth is fundamental to increase social well-being, such growth is likely to come at a cost of the environment. A complete reconceptualization of CSR is required if the mandated CSR is to succeed. It will involve companies redesigning their value chain in line with SDGs and collaborating across various stakeholder groups to find environmental and socially responsible solutions to their business problems.

Implications for Stakeholders and Other Developing Countries

India's experience in mandating CSR for its listed companies holds valuable lessons for various stakeholders. Logics of CSR in developing countries are often different from their counterparts in developed countries ( Jamali, Karam, Yin, & Soundararajan, 2017 ). Corporate participation in national SDG-related activities can be invaluable to combat climate change and poverty. Corporations bring in a nuanced understanding of communities, their demands and ways of meeting them profitably. Bringing such knowledge could help governments and civic society rethink or reinforce their current strategy for sustainable development. CSR could be an important tool to forge business society partnerships. However, CSR thinking among business professionals need to go beyond considering CSR as a portfolio of small and big development projects. We suggest that CSR be seen more as a part of a larger whole with the latter being defined by the grand challenges faced by a country. Governments would do well to think of an open but connected platform where multiple corporate players can come and co-create solutions for particular social or environmental problems. Taking cue from our study, in the Indian context, the top five spenders in CSR can engage with the government and leading NGOs to design a national programme for education. Such designs will be guided by corporate mission, government vision for development, NGO action and community needs. A national standardization of priorities and program specifications can in turn lead or motivate medium or smaller companies either to join these initiatives or create something on similar lines. Grand challenges can be the factor unifying various stakeholders for national and international development.

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An analysis of corporate social responsibility policies and practices in India

• Original Article
• Published: 08 October 2023
• Volume 3 , article number  194 , ( 2023 )

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• Bishnuprasad Mohapatra   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-7453-8490 1 , 2 &
• Tanaya Mohanty 2  

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Corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices in India have been made mandatory for corporations through the Companies Act of 2013. The rise of regulations on CSR, the subsequent growth in CSR funds, and growing controversies over CSR regulations and compliances have raised questions over the regulated approach and ethos of social responsibility. In this background, this article examines the context of emergence and objectives of different sections of the Act, and controversies surrounding CSR policies, besides analysing the patterns and trends of CSR compliances. The study has adopted discourse analysis method to analyse CSR policies and compliances. The study's findings reveal that CSR practice guidelines are coercive and (over) regulated, and it witnessed misconduct by corporations in various forms of CSR compliance. Simultaneously, the regulations have brought positive changes in CSR transparency and accountability, as well as in the expenditures with the inclusion of different social welfare sectors in CSR scope. The manifestations of the CSR policies still fail to provide a clear scenario regarding implementation. However, the entire idea of corporate responsibility regulations is in a nascent state.

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Availability of data and materials.

The data associated with this study is openly available at National CSR Portal, GoI. https://www.csr.gov.in/content/csr/global/master/home/home.html . However, the data associated with the study are kept by corresponding author and can be made available upon reasonable request.

Though this committee was set up in September, 2018, it was published on 7th August, 2019 which took into consideration the loopholes of the Companies’ Act, 2013 and Companies (Amendment) Act, 2019. In fact this report made an attempt to address the issues, shortcomings and criticism against Companies (Amendment) Act 2019 even though the High Level Committee on Corporate Social Responsibility was set up prior to the latter. Additional text on High Level Committee is attached as the supplementary file.

Discourse analysis is the in-depth text analysis. Two methods exist for doing this. Firstly, from a linguistic standpoint. Thus, grammatical and linguistic considerations are given weight in this sentence. Second, it may be approached from a sociological perspective. It is believed that in this context, meanings are "socially produced or constructed" and that language use is a form of social activity or practices. There is no hard-and-fast rule that must be followed in discourse analysis, regardless of the methodologies a researcher uses. The researcher then analyses that collection of texts according to the analytical framework that he/she wants to apply.

The survey titled ‘India’s CSR Reporting Survey 2018’, was conducted by KMPG India. The report has analyzed 4 years (2014–15 to 2017–18) of CSR data of top 100 listed companies in India.

CSR Data has been Collected and Compiled from the National CSR Portal ( https://CSR.gov.in/CSR/ ) for the financial year 2014–15 to 2019–20 on 10th July 2021. The details of CSR expenditure data are provided in the supplement file table A.

This discussion came to limelight in parliament question hour session of the Lok Sabha on 3rd July 2019, IT and Telecom Minister said that BSNL expected to losses rupees 14,000 crore in the financial year 2018–19 (Economic Times, 3rd July 2019). Though, the losses of BSNL started 13 years ago (Economic Time, 8th April 2019) and it got accelerated from the financial year 2015–16 (Economic Times, 3rd July 2019), when NITI Aayog had proposed to closure the BSNL company over continuous loss making (Sharma 2019 ).

List of activities or projects under different CSR development sectors are compiled in the supplement file table B.

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Mohapatra, B., Mohanty, T. An analysis of corporate social responsibility policies and practices in India. SN Bus Econ 3 , 194 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43546-023-00571-9

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Lok Sabha results: BJP's vote share dips by 1.25 per cent in Gujarat compared to 2019 Lok Sabha polls

The Election Commission data reveals that the BJP secured victory in 25 out of the 26 Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat. However, the party's vote share declined from 63.11 per cent in the 2019 elections to 61.86 per cent in the recent polls. The Congress and AAP, both members of the INDIA bloc, collectively garnered 33.93 per cent of the votes in the 25 constituencies they contested. The Congress's vote share stood at 31.24 per cent, while the AAP managed to secure 2.69 per cent. In a closely contested battle, the Congress succeeded in wresting the Banaskantha seat from the BJP, preventing the ruling party from achieving a third consecutive clean sweep of all 26 seats in the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah. Despite fielding candidates in Bharuch and Bhavnagar as part of the INDIA bloc, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) failed to secure victory in these constituencies. The EC data also highlighted that in the 2019 elections, when the Congress contested independently without any alliance, it registered a vote share of 32.55 per cent but failed to win a single seat.

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Ravi Shankar Prasad, BJP's winning candidate from Patna Sahib Lok Sabha seat says, "I thank the people of Patna Sahib for blessing me. PM Narendra Modi will take oath as the Prime Minister soon." When asked about the speculations around Bihar CM and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar, he says, "Nitish Kumar and Chandrababu Naidu have cleared their stand"

Election Result News: PM Modi likely to form new government on June 8 with the help of allies

The Election Commission of India has announced the results for 542 out of the 543 Lok Sabha constituencies, following the conclusion of the Lok Sabha elections. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the single largest party, securing 240 seats, while the Congress party made significant gains, winning 99 seats. However, the BJP's victory count fell short of its previous performances in 2019 and 2014, when it had won 303 and 282 seats, respectively. In contrast, the Congress party showcased a remarkable improvement, nearly doubling its tally from 52 seats in 2019 and more than doubling its 2014 count of 44 seats. The INDIA bloc, a coalition of opposition parties, exceeded expectations by crossing the 230-seat mark, presenting a formidable challenge to the ruling party and defying the predictions made by various exit polls. PM Modi has secured a third term, but the BJP will need to rely on the support of other parties in his coalition - JD (U) chief Nitish Kumar and TDP's chief Chandrababu Naidu. The BJP, having fallen 32 seats short of the 272 majority mark, will require the support of its coalition partners to form the government. This marks the first instance since 2014 that the BJP has not achieved a majority on its own. As the nation awaits the formation of the new government, the leaders of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) are expected to convene at Prime Minister Modi's residence later today to discuss the way forward.

India Election 2024 Results: President Murmu accepts PM Modi's resignation, requests him to continue till June 8

President Murmu accepted PM Modi's resignation and requested him to continue till new government assumes office, Rashtrapati Bhavan informed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President Droupadi Murmu, tendering resignation along with council of ministers:

Lok Sabha Elections: 'Public has rejected negative politics', says Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav

After his party’s performance in Lok Sabha elections in UP, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav says, “Yes, I am going to Delhi. It is all a matter of numbers (govt formation). The public has rejected negative politics. We aimed to stop BJP. I thank the public for this and their cooperation. The votes were cast to save the Constitution, democracy and reservation, and we hope that by walking on the path of social justice we will be able to fulfil the dreams of Netaji and Samajwadis."

India Election 2024 Results: AJSU Party chief to attend NDA meeting, says alliance got mandate to form govt

Sudesh Mahto, the leader of the AJSU Party, declared that the NDA has secured the necessary mandate to establish the government at the Centre, as it has comfortably surpassed the majority mark of 272 in the 543-member Lok Sabha. Mahto departed for Delhi to participate in the NDA meeting scheduled to take place in the national capital later that day, following an invitation from Union Home Minister Amit Shah, according to a party spokesperson. In the seat-sharing arrangement with the BJP, the AJSU Party, an NDA ally in Jharkhand, was allocated the Giridih constituency, which it successfully won. The party's candidate, Chandraprakash Choudhary, emerged victorious, defeating JMM's Mathura Mahato by a margin of 80,880 votes.

Congress party's newly-elected MP from Amethi, Kishori Lal Sharma shows his winning certificate as he meets Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and MP Rahul Gandhi.

New govt formation: PM Modi reaches Rashtrapati Bhavan to submit resignation

PM Modi reached Rashtrapati Bhavan to handover Cabinet resolution to President.

Viral photo of Bihar CM-JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav travelling to Delhi on the same flight. Both of them were travelling to Delhi for NDA meeting and INDIA bloc meeting respectively.

Lok Sabha Elections: Jharkhand CM Champai Soren on election results

Champai Soren, Jharkhand CM says, "Election is over so it is important to talk among the alliance so there is a meeting in the evening...no party has got the majority, all are going forward with alliance only. Therefore it is important for us to hold a discussion"

New government formation: PM Modi to take oath on June 8

The formation of the NDA government and the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi likely to take place on June 8.

Lok Sabha Elections: Maharashtra BJP holds meeting to discuss Lok Sabha poll results

A meeting of the Maharashtra unit of the BJP began here on Wednesday, a day after the party won nine Lok Sabha seats in the state, where its tally dwindled by 14 as compared to the 2019 parliamentary polls. Deputy chief minister and senior BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis and the party's state unit chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule are among the leaders who are attending the meeting, party sources said. The party's performance will be analysed during the meetings and discussions related to it will be held, they said. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP had won 23 seats in Maharashtra. This time, the BJP and allies won 17 seats out of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in the state, with the BJP's tally dwindling by less than half compared to 2019, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) of Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) won 30 of the 48 seats. The BJP-led NDA fell significantly short of its target of bagging 45-plus seats in Maharashtra, garnering just 17 seats. The Congress won 13 seats, a quantum jump from the solitary seat it won in the state in 2019, while Shiv Sena (UBT) won nine and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) got eight seats.

'You fought with love, truth and kindness': Priyanka Gandhi pens emotional note for brother Rahul

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, a prominent Congress leader, expressed her heartfelt sentiments for her brother, Rahul Gandhi, following his victory in both constituencies he contested and the party's improved performance in the Lok Sabha elections. In her touching message, she commended Rahul's unwavering determination and resilience. Despite facing skepticism regarding his convictions and being subjected to what she described as an "overwhelming propaganda of lies," Priyanka emphasized that Rahul remained steadfast in his pursuit of truth. She praised his courage, stating that he "never backed down and kept fighting for truth." Priyanka Gandhi characterized her brother as the "bravest of all," highlighting his approach of combating challenges with love, truth, and kindness. She concluded her note by expressing her deep sense of pride in Rahul Gandhi's actions and character.

Lok Sabha Elections: 'Have some patience. Wait & watch', says RJD's Tejashwi Yadav

When asked if INDIA alliance will try to have their govt at the Centre, RJD's Tejashwi Yadav says, "Have some patience. Wait & watch." As photos of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar & him travelling on the same flight to Delhi go viral, he says, "We greeted each other. Baaki kya hota hai, aage dekhte dekhte rahiye."

2024 Lok Sabha Election Results: 'Sarkar toh ab banegi hi', says JDU leader Nitish Kumar on reaching Delhi

"Sarkar toh ab banegi hi," Bihar CM and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar said as he arrived in Delhi for the NDA meeting. Party MP Sanjay Kumar Jha is also accompanying him.

2024 Election Results: RJD leader Manoj Jha on Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and Tejashwi Yadav taking same flight

"Why are these visuals surprising to anyone? We (RJD and JD(U)) have worked together as well as separately. The visuals just represent the respect Tejashwi Yadav has for Nitish Kumar," says RJD leader Manoj Jha on Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and Tejashwi Yadav travelling to Delhi in the same flight.

2024 Election Results: Sharad Pawar says haven't spoken to Naidu or Nitish amid speculations

Amid buzz, Sharad Pawar said that he hasn't spoken to TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu or JDU leader Nitish Kumar amid speculations. This comes after reports suggested that Pawar has reached out to the two leaders with an aim of taking INDIA alliance past the 272-mark.

2024 Election Results: 'I know my height', says Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin on INDIA bloc projecting him as PM pick

"I know my height": Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin repeated this famous statement of his father M Karunanidhi, when asked if INDIA bloc would project him as its PM candidate. "I have said this several times," he told reporters on Tuesday. Stalin said he would leave for New Delhi to take part in INDIA alliance meeting, and thanked the efforts made by INDIA bloc leaders and cadres to defeat fascism and to safeguard democracy and the Constitution.

2024 Election Results: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulates PM Modi

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulates Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the third consecutive victory of BJP-led NDA alliance in Lok Sabha Elections. "I wish the people of India peace and prosperity, and I hope for continued cooperation between our countries. May our partnership continue to thrive, bringing progress and mutual understanding for our nations...we also look forward to seeing India attend the Peace Summit," he tweets.

2024 Election Results: What Congress leader Kamal Nath said about Nakul Nath losing election from Chhindwara

Here's what Congress leader Kamal Nath said about his son Nakul Nath losing election from Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh, which continued to be his bastion for long. Kamal Nath had won nine times from Chhindwara since 1980. "I accept the result and the decision of people. My role to serve people of Chhindwara will be the same."

2024 Lok Sabha Election Results: Key Union Cabinet meeting after poll results begins

The Union Cabinet meeting to take stock of the Lok Sabha election results and recommend the dissolution of the current Lok Sabha has begun. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the meeting, a day after the general election results were declared. Sources said Modi has convened the meeting at his Lok Kalyan Marg residence and is likely to recommend the dissolution of the 17th Lok Sabha, whose term ends on June 16.

2024 Election Results: INDIA bloc meet at 6pm today

INDIA Alliance meeting to be held at 6 PM today at the residence of Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge to discuss the election results and strategy thereafter.

Lok Sabha Election Results 2024: 'Search for your replacement is on...': RJD's Manoj Jha to PM Modi after LS poll results

Manoj Jha, a prominent figure in the Rashtriya Janata Dal, strongly criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party following their failure to secure a majority in the Lok Sabha elections. He asserted that the public had delivered a "shock" to the party due to their "attitude." Furthermore, Jha directed his criticism towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that in the aftermath of the election results, the BJP-RSS is actively seeking Modi's "replacement." Manoj Jha said, "You talked about 400 paar. You had a majority in 2014 and 2019, but this time you are 34 seats short of a majority. Accept this, the people have given you a shock and told you that the government won't be run with this attitude. People did not let you reach 272 seats." "Has coalition ever mattered to you (BJP)? What did you do with Shiv Sena, Akali Dal and even Nitish ji and Chandrababu ji. Today, it is your need, but I know the Prime Minister's party and the organisation in Nagpur (RSS)...your (PM Modi) replacement is being searched, so think over that," he added.

Election Results 2024 News: Tejashwi Yadav, Nitish Kumar on same flight to attend meetings of INDIA and NDA in Delhi

As the race to form the next government intensifies, both the NDA and INDIA alliances are convening strategic meetings in Delhi to secure the necessary numbers for a majority. To establish a government, a party or coalition must attain a two-third majority, which translates to 272 seats. With this goal in mind, the BJP and the INDIA bloc are holding separate meetings in the capital city to explore potential coalition partners. Among the NDA leaders arriving in Delhi are Bihar chief minister and Janata Dal United (JDU) chief Nitish Kumar, as well as Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N Chandrababu Naidu. Interestingly, Nitish Kumar and his former INDIA ally, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav, will be sharing the same flight to Delhi. The Union Cabinet meeting is slated for around 3:30 pm, while the INDIA bloc will convene at 6 pm in the national capital. As the political landscape continues to shift, all eyes are on these crucial meetings that could determine the future of India's governance.

Lok Sabha Election Results: Sharad Pawar, Supriya Sule leave for Delhi for INDIA bloc meeting

Sharad Pawar, the NCP-SCP chief, and Supriya Sule, the party's MP from Baramati, departed from Mumbai on Wednesday morning, heading to Delhi to attend the INDIA bloc meeting scheduled for later in the day. The NCP-SCP managed to secure 8 seats in Maharashtra during the recent Lok Sabha elections. Supriya Sule emerged victorious in the Baramati Lok Sabha Seat for the fourth consecutive time, defeating Sunetra Pawar, her sister-in-law. Expressing her gratitude to the people of Baramati, Sule in a message to the people of Baramati, thanked the voters for reposing their faith in her again. As political strategies are being formulated, both the BJP-led NDA and the Opposition INDIA bloc have planned meetings on Wednesday to discuss their future courses of action and solidify their respective positions.

Election Results 2024 News: Union minister G Kishan Reddy arrives in Delhi for NDA meeting

G Kishan Reddy, the Union minister and BJP MP representing Secunderabad, reached Delhi on Wednesday prior to the scheduled NDA meeting for the day. In an interaction with ANI, Reddy conveyed his assurance regarding the cohesion within the NDA alliance."There is no difficulty, all the parties are with us. We have spoken with everyone. This is not a new alliance, we were in the alliance even before the elections. We have worked together. There is no problem. NDA got the mandate," he said.In the state of Telangana, both the BJP and Congress secured eight seats each. The AIMIM party, led by Asaduddin Owaisi, emerged victorious in one seat. Owaisi himself triumphed in the Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency, defeating BJP candidate Madhavi Latha by a substantial margin of 338,087 votes.

Election Result News: 'Modi is no longer a brand', says Congress leader Pramod Tiwari

"The question is not that BJP could not get the majority, it is that BJP could not get the majority under PM Modi's leadership for the first time. They had majority in 2014 and 2019. If they wouldn't had NDA alliance, then they would have failed to get even this much seats. Modi is no longer a brand," says Congress leader Pramod Tiwari.

Election Result News: Here's what LJP chief Chirag Paswan said after meeting Nitish Kumar

After meeting Bihar CM and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar, LJP (Ram Vilas) chief and MP Chirag Paswan says, "It was not a day to hold discussions but only to congratulate the CM. The manner in which the CM strengthened our alliance. The credit for the NDA's performance in Bihar goes to the leadership of PM Modi as well as Nitish Kumar. All MPs of my party met him to congratulate him, thank him and seek his blessings. We are now going to Delhi for the NDA meeting."

Election Result News: 'Will discuss future course of action', says AAP MP Sanjay Singh

On the INDIA alliance meeting, AAP MP Sanjay Singh says, "We will all sit and and discuss the future course of action. Before 2019, Chandrababu Naidu tried to bring everyone in the country together and raised his voice against dictatorship and also for the federal structure of the country. Nitish Kumar brought the whole INDIA alliance together. It's not that these two leaders have some devotion or respect for Narendra Modi or Amit Shah."

India Election 2024 Results: LJP chief Chirag Paswan to arrive in Delhi

LJP (Ram Vilas) party office in Delhi being decorated ahead of the arrival of party chief and MP Chirag Paswan. The party won 5 seats in Bihar; Chirag Paswan won Hajipur seat by a margin of 1,70,105 votes.

India General Election Results: Italian PM Meloni congratulates PM Modi on electoral victory

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy extended her heartfelt congratulations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his remarkable achievement of securing a third consecutive term in the Lok Sabha elections. In her message, she emphasized her unwavering belief that the two leaders will join forces to fortify the bond of friendship that unites their respective nations.Moreover, the Italian Prime Minister expressed her conviction that India and Italy will collaborate closely on a wide array of matters that not only connect the two countries but also contribute to the welfare and prosperity of their citizens. She highlighted the shared commitment of both nations to work hand in hand for the betterment of their people.

2024 Election Results: In Telangana battle, saffron hue wipes out pink party; Congress’s honeymoon continues

For the first time since the formation of Telangana in 2014, Congress and BJP have become dominant political forces in the state, both sharing the spoils of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections with eight seats each of the 17 up for grabs. This was largely a result of a formidable force like the BRS being decimated.

Election Results: Union Cabinet to meet today; Both NDA, INDIA bloc to strategise after LS poll results

The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, announced on Tuesday evening that the NDA would be forming the upcoming government, following the outcome of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The Union Cabinet, under Modi's leadership, is scheduled to convene on Wednesday, just a day after the election results were declared. In preparation for their upcoming political strategies and actions, both the BJP-led NDA and the Opposition INDIA bloc have planned meetings for Wednesday. These gatherings will focus on determining the most effective course of action for each alliance moving forward. Early Wednesday morning, the Election Commission finalized the declaration of results for all 543 Lok Sabha constituencies by posting the outcome of votes polled in Maharashtra's Beed constituency on their official website. The BJP emerged victorious in 240 seats, while the Congress secured 99 seats in the Lok Sabha.

Election Results: Nitish Kumar to attend NDA meeting in Delhi today

Bihar chief minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar will take part in the NDA meeting scheduled in the national capital today. Kumar, whose party is set to grab 12 out of the state's 40 seats, will reach Delhi today. Kumar had visited Delhi during the weekend when he met top BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. With the BJP falling short of majority, Kumar is being seen as a key player whom the opposition INDIA bloc is also sending fillers.

Election Results: ‘Bhatakti Aatma’ stages a comeback, shows his nephew who’s the real NCP

Sharad Pawar’s challengers will have to wait. The 83-year-old, who was ridiculed as a ‘bhatakti aatma’ by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the campaign, has just licked them again in the toughest match of his career. Going into the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Pawar was fighting with one hand tied

Election Results: Uddhav Thackeray proves he’s more than just his father’s son

With his Shiv Sena (UBT) winning 9 of the 21 Maharashtra Lok Sabha seats it contested as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance, the results are a mixed bag for Uddhav Thackeray, who has lost the official party name and symbol to the rival Eknath Shinde-led formation.

Election Results: Didi’s gambit to ditch INDIA in West Bengal, ‘go ekla’ splits votes in her favour

Leading the party with 108 public rallies and multiple road shows, one of which saw her walk 12km at a stretch on her south Kolkata home turf, Banerjee, 69, criss-crossed from Coochbehar in the northernmost extreme to South 24 Parganas, where Bengal meets the Bay of Bengal. She went to Nandigram, where she lost in 2021 (a legal battle is still on over BJP’s alleged electoral malpractices).

Election Results: ‘Bold decisions’ to define third term, says Modi, vows war against graft

Shrugging off celebrations in the opposition camp over BJP’s loss of majority, PM Narendra Modi Tuesday declared his third term would be defined by bold decisions, signalled the likelihood of fresh initiatives specifically aimed at women, the poor and SCs/STs and declared his intent to press on with his drive against corruption.

Election Results: EC declares results of all Lok Sabha constituencies; BJP wins 240 seats, Congress 99

The Election Commission of India has declared results for all Lok Sabha constituencies, with the BJP winning 240 of the 543 seats and the Congress 99. The last result to be announced was that of Beed constituency in Maharashtra, where NCP (Sharad Pawar) candidate Bajrang Manohar Sonwane defeated the BJP's Pankaja Munde by 6,553 votes.

Election Results: Minority community plays major role in SP & Trinamool seat surge

A significant portion of the INDIA bloc’s success rests on Muslims, who voted decisively against BJP and formed a coalition with backward castes and Dalits. This restricted BJP from getting a clear majority while giving Samajwadi Party in UP and TMC in West Bengal a clear advantage.

Election Results: Mandal momentum shakes up Hindutva juggernaut

Lok Sabha elections saw a decisive win for a caste-focused coalition in UP, reshaping the political landscape. This shift from religious to caste-based campaigning highlighted a significant change in voter priorities. The opposition alliance, led by SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, ran on a platform of caste census and constitutional protections, appealing primarily to Dalits and OBCs. In contrast, PM Modi’s campaign centred around religious themes.