Ms Neha (Abhyankar) Malkhare

Assiatant Professor, K.G.Joshi College of Arts and N.G. Bedekar College of Commerce,
Thane
M.Com, Company Secretary, NET, SET
___________________________________________________________________________

A Study of CSR activities carried out by Kotak Education Foundation in

Mumbai
Abstract:
Today there is a growing perception among enterprises that sustainable business success and
shareholder value cannot be achieved through short term profits but through market oriented
responsible behavior. Organisations are becoming more and more aware of this fact and the
legal environment is responding by making CSR a compulsory activity based on certain
turnover and profit parameters.
Many business organisations in India have undertaken philanthropic activities on their own
volition even before the mandatory requirements came into force. The Kotak group is one
such organization who has been carrying on activities relating to Health, Education and
Vocational Training since 2007, through its corporate NGO.
Key words: CSR, Kotak Education Foundation, health, education, vocational training.

A Study of CSR activities carried out by Kotak Education Foundation in

Mumbai
Introduction and meaning
Ever since the beginning of civilization and commerce, the concept of business with
responsibility and ethics has been a topic of discussion. Various thinkers and economists have
expressed different views as to whether these are independent concepts, or they are related
and the degree of dependence of one on the other. While one school of thought advocates a
complete divorce between business and ethics and good governance, the popular thought
converged towards the contribution of the same in the long term profitability of the
organization.
CSR is an extension of the thought of ethics in business. The idea here is that the commercial
organization is part of society. It is part of a larger scheme and system of things. The business
receives the factors of production from society and the purpose of business is to satisfy the
needs and wants of the same society. No commercial organization can function like an island.
So, society is the provider as well as receiver in the process of wealth creation. Thus comes
the concept of giving back to society and care for it or else find it difficult to survive in
competitive markets.
The idea of profit maximization along with a consideration for responsibility towards society
is gaining ground for the last 50 years. The business operates in an environment which is
constituted by the society by its moral cultural and social behaviours. The various factors in
the external environment define and to a certain extent, dictate the plans, policies and
strategies of the business. Business needs to maintain equilibrium, both externally and
internally in a dynamic society. This self-correcting tendency to maintain equilibrium is
called homeostatic social system. Thus the organisations must adapt to this paradigm shift in
perception of the responsibility of the business towards society.
CSR has been defined by The World Business Council for Sustainable Development, in its
publication, “Making Good Business Sense” by Lord Holme and Richard Watts as,
“CSR is the continuing social commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to
economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families
as well as of the local community and society at large”.
Thus CSR may be dissected as Corporate= Organised business, Social= everything dealing
with people and R= Accountability between the two.
The 1990s was the watershed decade in Indian business. The Indian economy received a shot
in the arm due to the LPG policy. The global competition, the global standards, restrructuring
of organisations, etc has had a profound impact in the way in which business is conducted in
India. It is obvious that the corporate India will play a major role in the sustainable and
qualitative development of the country in the coming years.
CSR is not a new concept to India. It is part of an ancient tradition. We fing references in
“Kural” the great book of Tiru Valluvars’s verses which stipulates moral verses for discharge
of social responsibility. Effective CSR towards any community requires close interaction
with current development thinking. Initially companies concentrated on welfare, whereas the
focus has now shifted to empowerment.
A number of surveys have been carried out to understand the nature and expanse of CSR
activities in India. The survey conducted by the Tata Energy Research Institute (TERI) called
“Altered Images- the 2001 state of CSR in India”, traces back the history of CSR in India and
identifies four models:

 The ‘Ethnic model’ as suggested by Mahatma Gandhi, where companies voluntarily

committed to public welfare and participated in nation building
 The ‘Statist model’ propounded by Pt Jawaharlal Nehru, which calls for state
ownership and legal requirements of CSR
 The ‘Liberal model’ of Milton Friedman which talks about CSR being limited to
private owners and shareholders.
 The latest ‘Stakeholder model’ championed by R. Edward Freeman, which calls for
companies to respond to all the stakeholders needs.
Objectives of the study:

 To over view the concept of CSR

 To examine the legal provisions in relation to CSR
 To study the various programmes conducted by the Kotak Education Fund

Research Methodology:

It is a known fact that research is only as authentic as its source.

The primary data was collected through a personal interview and interaction with Ms Sucheta
Rege Senior Assistant Manager, Volunteering Programme, Kotak Education Fund.

Secondary data was collected through books, periodicals, articles, brochures, and other
published material, a detailed list whereof has been provided in the reference section.
The scope and expanse of the study is limited to the areas under consideration as well as the
time frame.

Legal Provisions in Companies Act, 2013

Section 135 of the Act provides the threshold limit for applicability of CSR to a company as:
a) Net worth of the company more than Rs 500 crores
b) Turnover more than Rs 1000 crores
c) Net profit of 5 crores of more .
Then every Qualifying company to spend 2% of its average net profits for the immediately
preceeding 3 financial years on CSR activities.
The act does not define the term CSR. However, the scope of activities that can be
undertaken is vast, right from eradicating extreme hunger and poverty to health, education,
vocational and environmental activities
The act also urges the companies to concentrate and undertake activities more in the local
areas. They can also combine with other companies for the purpose and publish the details
regarding the same in their annual report.

CSR activities of the Kotak Education Foundation

The Kotak Education Foundation was formed in the year 2007 for the furtherance of social
responsibility by undertaking activities in the areas of Vikhroli and M ward in Chembur,
Mumbai. This area is in close proximity to the garbage dumping grounds. It necessitates the
need for health monitoring, education and livelihoods. The funding for the same was
provided initially from the personal funds of Mr Uday Kotak and later from the business
funds of the business.

Projects under the NGO

1) UMANG

The programme Umang is a Student intervention programme conducted in more than 35

schools. It concentrates on the English speaking skills of students from 5 th to 8th standard.
Students in secondary school do not understand basic English inspite of having learnt it from
Class I.The idea behind the programme was to concentrate on the English communication
skills of students studying in vernacular medium schools and to make them college or job
ready. The classes are so selected so that the programme is concluded before the preparation
for board exams starts. It is conducted through an indegeniously developed teaching
methodology covering 3500 students within and outside school hours.
Umang has successfully conducted the programme and helped in the enhacement of both
skills and personality development in children from these schools.

2) STEP

The School Teacher Enrichment Programme is conducted in 19 schools realizing the fact that
a teacher is the person the students come in contact with the most. The programme spans
from pre primary to secondary sections covring about 400 teachers through:

 Intensive training workshops in lesson teaching in English, Science and Maths

 Training in spoken English, Personality Development and IT skills
 Class observations and one to one mentoring.

The objective is to “teach the teacher” to help them update their knowledge, skills and the
latest developments in the field. This helps the teachers cope with the new challenges and
deal with the various problems both in the class and outside. It also builds their confidence
and dedication towards the teaching profession.

3) PREP (Principals Enrichment Programme)

Principals work as head of institutions and have evolved from being a teacher and rising to
the greater responsibility. It is believed that they need to be leaders and role models, not just
amongst the students and teachers but in society as a whole. A holistic Leadership
Development Programme has been launched in 2013 covering 20 Principals from 7 schools.
 4) Health and Nutrition Programmes

A significant reason for students dropping out of schools is health related. Various health
problems like Anaemia (8th and 9th Std), Myopia (10000 students), Basic hygiene, sex
education (8th and 9th std), deworming (all students from 5th to 10th Std), etc is addressed
through regular medical check ups and follow up through the prescribed medicines for
The programme also includes an activity called as “Mazhi Swacchha Shala” or My Clean
School in 6 schools for creating awareness about personal and community cleanliness and
hygiene.

5) Kotak Unnati

Urban poverty is caught up in a vicious circle. Poverty leads to lack of education and skill
development. Migrated populations also face this problem. This leads to lack of
employability skills which renders the candidate unsuitable even for basic jobs. This leads to
further impoverishment.
The KEF has considered it necessary to break this cycle and introduce employability skills so
that the underprivileged students between the age of 18-25, who have been dropouts from
schools or colleges can be trained in 3 months vocational courses in industries like Retail and
hospitality, along with personality development, spoken English, IT skills, soft skills, etc.
KEF also provides assistance in placing such candidates in upwardly mobile employment and
a certain amount of hand holding during the first year of employment. This programme has
trained around 600 youths in 5 centres and provided employment to about 400 of them. Their
commercial and CSR partners in this cause are brands like Café Coffee Day, Faasos,
Dominos, Croma, Lifestyle, Hypercity, Star Bazaar, Shoppers Stop, to name a few.
They can thus break the vicious cycle of urban poverty by elevating the family above the
poverty line and providing better education and career opportunities for the next generation.

6) Scholarships and Mentoring

KEF has realized that many young bright minds have academic potential but may lose out on
opportunities due to financial difficulties and lack of proper support. Such students are
provided with additional academic support through coaching, providing emotional support
and counselling parents in this regard through two intensive programmes;

 Kotak Udaan: Where children having severe hardships like orphans, single parents,
unstable families, suffering from major illnesses, etc and who may drop out without
proper intervention are provided with the tools necessary to excel in academics.
 Kotak In Search of Excellence: where students who have performed well in Class 10
are provided with educational scholarships and a strong life skill mentoring
programme support.
Conclusion:
CSR is here to stay as a method towards sustainable profitability. The legal compulsions
justify its need in the corporate arena and the future will see more and more corporate entities
getting involved in the process of social empowerment and effort.
KEP has been involved in CSR activities at the grass root level and has initiated the
programmes on their own accord, without any legal pressures. This talks about the empathy
the organization has had towards society at large and particularly towards the education and
development, physical, mental, social and financial, of the students and other stakeholders in
the system. Such initiatives ultimately benefit the entire society as the students can realise
their potential, rise from poverty, make a better future for themselves and for the economy as
a whole.

References:
 V Balachandran and V Chandrasekaran, PHI Learning Private Limited, 2013,
‘Corporate Governance, Ethics and Social Responsibility’.
 The Institute of Company Secretaries, Taxmann, 2011, ‘Corporate Governance-
Beyond Letters’
 H.L.Gantt, Industrial Management, Organising for Work’, (1919)
 H.R. Bowen, ‘Social responsibilities of Businessman’, Harper, New York, 1952
 Personal direct interview and interaction with Ms Sucheta Rege, Senior Assistant
Manager, Volunteering Programme, Kotak Education Fund.
 Brochures of KEF
 Online articles on the subject of CSR