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  • bigbasket farmer empowerment: heartwarming stories from India’s fields on Kisan Diwas

    bigbasket farmer empowerment: heartwarming stories from India’s fields on Kisan Diwas

    On Kisan Diwas, as India honours its hardworking farmers, there’s a quiet revolution unfolding in villages across 16 states—one that’s putting smiles on faces and money directly into pockets. bigbasket, a TATA Enterprise, is at the heart of this change, empowering over 50,000 farmers through a network of more than 120 collection centres right at the farm gate.

    Imagine a farmer in rural Karnataka, waking before dawn to harvest crisp vegetables. Instead of haggling with middlemen who take a big cut, he loads his produce onto a truck heading to a nearby bigbasket centre. By evening, the payment hits his bank account—within just 48 hours. No delays, no uncertainty. This simple shift has brought stability to thousands of families who once worried about unpredictable income.

    It all started small in 2015, with one collection centre in Malur near Bengaluru. Over the past decade, bigbasket has strengthened this model, building trust one harvest at a time. Today, a dedicated team of over 400 agricultural graduates, including agronomists at every centre, works hand-in-hand with farmers. Using the in-house Farmus app, they geotag fields, forecast harvests, and advise on growing high-demand crops that fetch better prices.

    “Our relationship with farmers is central to everything we do,” says Seshu Kumar Tirumala, chief buying & merchandising officer at bigbasket. “It’s about long-term trust and shared success, not just buying produce.”

    For organic farmers, the support goes even deeper. Through 12 exclusive centres, bigbasket helps around 6,300 growers get certified—at no cost to them. Trained local youth, called Jaivikmitras, visit farms to teach natural methods, like preparing Jeevamruth and Beejamruth, traditional elixirs that enrich the soil without chemicals.

    These stories aren’t just numbers—they’re about real people gaining dignity, security, and hope. As bigbasket continues to revolutionize farmer empowerment, it’s proving that a fairer food chain benefits everyone: fresher produce on our tables, and brighter futures in India’s fields.

  • Maruti launches WagonR Swivel seat for inclusive mobility

    Maruti launches WagonR Swivel seat for inclusive mobility

    Maruti Suzuki India Limited launched a revolutionary Maruti WagonR swivel seat option on Thursday, marking a pioneering step toward inclusive mobility in India’s mass market automobile segment.

    The WagonR swivel seat is specifically designed to provide greater convenience for senior citizens and persons with disabilities, aligning with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 10 on reducing inequality.

    “Swivel seat will make daily travel more convenient for senior citizens and persons with disabilities,” said Hisashi Takeuchi, Managing Director and CEO of Maruti Suzuki India.

    “This initiative reflects our vision of inclusive mobility and reinforces our commitment to customer-focused solutions,” he said in a statement.

    The automaker partnered with Bangalore-based startup TRUEAssist Technology Private Limited through its incubation program with NSRCEL-IIM Bangalore to develop the Maruti WagonR swivel seat solution.

    RETROFITTING AND AVAILABILITY

    Customers can order the swivel seat as a retrofitting kit at Maruti Suzuki Arena dealerships. The seat can be installed in new WagonR models or retrofitted in existing vehicles, according to the company statement.

    The product initially will be available at more than 200 Arena dealerships across 11 cities, with plans to scale up based on customer demand.

    WagonR’s tall-boy design offers spacious headroom and legroom, facilitating easier entry and exit, making it suitable for this innovative mobility solution. The model ranks among India’s top 10 selling vehicles.

    SAFETY AND WARRANTY

    The WagonR swivel seat kit has undergone safety testing at the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) and meets required safety standards, Maruti Suzuki said.

    Installation does not modify the vehicle’s structure or core functioning. The swivel seat comes with a three-year warranty.

    “By integrating our innovation into a model loved by the masses, we can ensure that inclusive mobility becomes a mainstream reality,” said Naina Padaki, founder of TRUEAssist Technology Private Limited.

    The initiative draws inspiration from Suzuki Group’s corporate slogan “By Your Side,” embodying the group’s commitment to customer-focused solutions rooted in founder Michio Suzuki’s vision.

  • Empowering Youth: ACC’s skill development transforms lives

    Empowering Youth: ACC’s skill development transforms lives

    In the rural hamlet of Gagal in Himachal Pradesh, ACC, a unit of the Adani Group’s diversified portfolio and India’s fastest-growing building materials firm, is bolstering youth livelihoods via targeted, community-driven skill development programs.

    Sakshi, 22, hails from a humble family in Gagal village, where early tragedy struck: her father died young, leaving her mother and elder brother to shoulder the financial load. Her sibling, a heavy machinery operator, toiled long hours to fund the household and Sakshi’s schooling amid mounting pressures.

    Eager to ease the strain, Sakshi turned to the Adani Skill Development Centre (ASDC), a joint initiative of ACC and the Adani Foundation. She joined the Retail Sales Associate program, honing key competencies in communication, customer interaction and sales techniques. The rigorous curriculum fortified her self-assurance and primed her for the competitive retail job market.

    Upon graduation, Sakshi landed a position at Royal Signet, a Bhatinda-based retailer, drawing a monthly salary of Rs 12,000 plus meals and lodging. Her ascent underscores the potent ripple effects of ACC‘s skill development efforts, which arm disadvantaged youth with tools to surmount barriers and forge stable prospects.

  • Signify illuminates 100 Indo-Nepal border villages to boost safety, livelihoods

    Signify illuminates 100 Indo-Nepal border villages to boost safety, livelihoods

    Lighting company Signify on Monday launched an initiative to install energy-efficient LED streetlights in 100 villages along the 1,700-km Indo-Nepal border, aiming to enhance nighttime safety and support local economies.

    The project, part of Signify’s “Har Gaon Roshan” corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme, targets communities facing mobility and security challenges after dusk. Each village was selected based on local input regarding footfall, safety risks and evening activities such as markets and school commutes.

    “At Signify, we believe in bringing the best of innovations to communities across India,” said Nikhil Gupta, head of marketing, strategy, government affairs and CSR for Greater India. “Through this initiative, we aim to bring long-term safety, sustainability and confidence to border communities. This partnership reflects our commitment to using light to positively impact lives in India, fostering sustainable growth and community empowerment.”

    The effort, developed in collaboration with the Tarq Foundation, addresses practical needs in remote areas where poor illumination hampers women’s safety, children’s education and small-scale trade.

    “Real development starts by listening to the people it is meant to serve,” said Manoviraj Singh, founding partner at Tarq Foundation. “Border communities have their own unique rhythms: evening markets, long walks home from school, and the daily movement of women whose sense of safety is directly shaped by how well-lit their surroundings are. This initiative responds to these lived realities. In these villages, light is not symbolic; it is practical, protective and deeply empowering.”

    The Indo-Nepal border lighting project marks a milestone in rural infrastructure, with installations expected to reduce energy use while promoting stronger social networks. Signify, a global leader in sustainable lighting solutions, said the rollout will continue monitoring community feedback for future expansions.

  • ACC Healthcare Outreach Transforms Life in Remote Tribal Village

    ACC Healthcare Outreach Transforms Life in Remote Tribal Village

    In the heart of a remote tribal hamlet in Gulitand village, Jharkhand where access to basic healthcare often feels like a distant dream, ACC—part of the diversified Adani Portfolio and India’s fastest-growing building materials powerhouse—is scripting stories of hope and renewal through its robust grassroots interventions.

    Community outreach efforts by ACC, in tandem with the Adani Foundation, have spotlighted the silent scourge of preventable blindness plaguing vulnerable families. Among those touched by this lifeline is 59-year-old Bhamuni Devi, whose world had faded into shadows due to untreated cataracts.

    Enter the unsung hero: a trained community volunteer, or “Sangini,” who became Bhamuni’s bridge to salvation. With unwavering support, the volunteer guided her through the process of securing an Ayushman Bharat card under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), India’s flagship health assurance scheme. This paved the way for seamless connection to an empanelled hospital, where free cataract surgery awaited—treatment that was once an insurmountable barrier for her modest means.

    The procedure proved a resounding success, shattering the veil of darkness that had confined Bhamuni. Today, she navigates her daily chores with renewed vigor, from tending to her home to cherishing moments with loved ones. This transformation isn’t just about restored vision; it’s a profound reclaiming of confidence, self-reliance, and dignity.

    ACC’s commitment to such ACC healthcare outreach underscores a broader mission: bridging healthcare gaps in underserved corners of India. By empowering local volunteers and leveraging government schemes like PM-JAY, the initiative is not merely treating ailments but fostering resilient communities. As Bhamuni’s story illustrates, every intervention ripples outward, illuminating paths to a healthier, more equitable future.

    For more on ACC’s social impact, visit Adani Foundation. Learn about PM-JAY at official PM-JAY portal.

  • ICSI unveils Stewardship Principles after COP30

    ICSI unveils Stewardship Principles after COP30

    Institute of Company Secretaries (ICSI) has launched guiding principles on stewardship to embed environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices in corporate strategies, building on commitments from the COP30 climate summit in Brazil.

    The ICSI Guiding Principles on Stewardship (IGPS) promote responsible asset management for long-term value, with adoption mandated by the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) for fund managers and institutional investors in India’s financial hubs. The principles shift focus from short-term gains to sustainable growth, urging stewards to demand robust ESG frameworks.

    Complementing the IGPS, ICSI released a Stakeholder Engagement Toolkit on ESG this year to help company secretaries and boards craft comprehensive policies. It also introduced the ICSI Principles on Climate Change Governance (IPCG), offering metrics and targets for transparent climate disclosures.

    “Integrating climate considerations into business requires well-crafted principles, detailed guidance and equipped professionals,” ICSI President CS Dhananjay Shukla said. “As a leader in best practices, ICSI delivers through these initiatives.”

    ICSI Secretary CS Asish Mohan added: “In a climate-challenged world, we leverage investors and stewards for principles-based governance supporting sustainable development.”

    The moves align with global pushes for climate finance and multilateral action, as nations at COP30 pledged new tools to combat warming.

  • Empowering women through Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation

    Empowering women through Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation

    In the sun-baked villages of Chhattisgarh, where the earth cracks under the weight of relentless summers, a quiet revolution is blooming in shades of yellow. For Sunita Yadav, a 38-year-old mother of three, the spice that once dusted her kitchen shelves has become the key to unlocking a future her family never dreamed possible—thanks to the transformative Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation initiative.

    Two years ago, Yadav was among 151 women from 11 remote hamlets, huddled in self-help groups (SHGs) that scraped by on subsistence farming. “We grew what the soil gave us—barely enough to eat,” she recalls, her calloused hands cradling a fistful of vibrant turmeric rhizomes. That changed in 2022-23, when Ambuja Cements—the ninth-largest global building materials giant and a pillar of the Adani Portfolio—launched its groundbreaking Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation program as part of its CSR efforts to bolster rural livelihoods through sustainable agriculture.

    With hands-on training in scientific methods tailored for Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation, the women chose the hardy Salem variety and sowed 20 quintals of seeds across four acres. Raised-bed planting, organic manuring, and mulching weren’t just techniques; they were lifelines under the Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation framework. The harvest? A staggering 3.7-fold yield surge, netting over Rs 2.66 lakh in their debut season. “It was like the gods smiled on our fields,” Yadav says, eyes lighting up. “For the first time, I had money to send my daughters to school without borrowing—all from embracing Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation.”

    Word spread faster than monsoon rains. By 2023-24, the Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation initiative swelled to 261 SHG women, who tilled eight acres and birthed a community seed bank—a grassroots exchange ensuring quality rhizomes stayed local and affordable. They reaped 10,100 kilograms of turmeric, pocketing a collective Rs 5.05 lakh . “We weren’t just farmers anymore,” adds Rukmini Sahu, a 42-year-old group leader. “We were entrepreneurs, trading our sweat for seeds of tomorrow, powered by Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation.”

    This year, in 2024-25, the Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation tide has crested with 313 women on board, fortified by better organic inputs and expert guidance from Ambuja’s teams. Their coffers now brim with over 3,100 kilograms of seeds—2,100 kilograms earmarked for sale to lure newcomers into the fold, while 7,500 kilograms sustain households through lean times. It’s a self-reinforcing cycle: Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation fueling financial independence, one rhizome at a time.

    Ambuja Cements’ Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation push underscores a broader vow to women-led entrepreneurship in Chhattisgarh, blending continuous training with enterprise development to weave inclusive rural growth into the fabric of Adani’s diversified empire. For these SHG trailblazers, the golden root isn’t just a crop—it’s a testament to resilience, turning parched plots into plots of prosperity through Ambuja Cements turmeric cultivation.

  • PepsiCo India expands water security initiative

    PepsiCo India expands water security initiative

    PepsiCo India, via the PepsiCo Foundation and partner Pandit Jagat Ram Memorial FORCE Trust, will extend its water security and sanitation efforts from 13 villages in Mathura to 17 more, doubling reach to 100,000 people under the Water & WASH Secure Villages Initiative.

    The expansion builds on achievements in safe drinking water, sanitation, hygiene and groundwater management, implemented with local panchayats, administrations, communities and schools. It aligns with PepsiCo’s “Partnership of Progress” ethos, emphasizing multi-stakeholder collaboration for rural India’s water security, the company said in a statement.

    Announced at the Convergence for Water and WASH Secure Rural Communities conference in New Delhi, the event drew India’s Jal Shakti Minister of State Raj Bhushan Choudhary, officials from national missions, CSR executives, panchayat leaders and Uttar Pradesh community figures. Highlights included unveiling “Pathways to Effective Rural Water Sustainability & WASH Interventions,” a compilation of program success stories.

    Choudhary praised the initiative, quoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi: “Catch the rain where it falls, when it falls,” and lauded PepsiCo and FORCE for generational water security benefits.

    Yashika Singh, PepsiCo India and South Asia’s chief corporate affairs and sustainability officer, said: “True progress comes from communities, partners and institutions advancing together. Our Water & WASH Secure Villages Initiative’s success in 13 villages proves collective action’s power, now extending water security to 17 more for resilient futures.”

    Globally, the PepsiCo Foundation’s 2024 water access programs aided 1.2 million people, totaling over 96 million since 2010, prioritizing infrastructure and stewardship in high-risk zones. India’s expansion is a key focus.

    FORCE founder Jyoti Sharma noted: “Community-driven solutions ensure lasting water security. Partnering with PepsiCo India, we’ve boosted sanitation, health and resilience in Mathura, leveraging conference insights for greater impact.”

    The project has deployed 11 community and 12 school reverse osmosis units, rainwater harvesting, pond rejuvenation, hygiene drives and training for water committees, backed by hydrogeological studies and behavior change campaigns. It supports Jal Jeevan Mission, Swachh Bharat Mission and climate goals.

    PepsiCo India advances water security through watershed projects, recharge, regenerative farming and community access, fostering resilient agriculture and national agendas.

  • No proposal for centralised CSR monitoring platform: Govt

    No proposal for centralised CSR monitoring platform: Govt

    There is no proposal to create a centralised CSR monitoring platform for oversight and evaluation, Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Harsh Malhotra stated on Tuesday.

    In his written reply to the Rajya Sabha, the minister further disclosed that the government has penalised 30 companies with a total penalty of Rs 19.94 crore for non-compliance.

    “Whenever violation of CSR provisions is reported, action against such non-compliant companies is initiated as per provisions of the Act after due examination of records and following due process of law,” he added.

    As per the latest data, companies spent Rs 34,908.75 crore on CSR activities in the 2023-24 financial year, marking an increase from Rs 30,932.07 crore in the previous year.

    This underscores growing corporate commitment to social responsibility amid ongoing discussions on enhancing CSR monitoring platforms for transparency.

    All data related to CSR filed by companies in the MCA21 registry is available in the public domain and can be accessed at www.csr.gov.in.

    Stakeholders and researchers can leverage this portal to track compliance and impact without the need for a new centralised CSR monitoring platform.

  • HCLFoundation-TNSDC partnership to deliver digital skills training to 2,500 rural youth

    HCLFoundation-TNSDC partnership to deliver digital skills training to 2,500 rural youth

    HCLFoundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of HCLTech, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation to deliver digital skills training to 2,500 rural youth over the next three years.

    The digital skills training programme targets youth in the Vilathikulam and Pudur blocks of Thoothukudi district, covering 95 village panchayats. It includes setting up micro workspaces at block headquarters to support remote jobs in information technology and IT-enabled services, with a placement tracking system to monitor outcomes.

    The initiative falls under TNSDC’s “Vetri Nichayam” scheme, which offers digital skills training and job placement for unemployed people aged 18-35.

    “This MoU with HCLFoundation is a proactive step to equip local youth with the digital skills training needed to participate meaningfully in the district’s evolving economic landscape,” Kranthi Kumar Pati, TNSDC managing director, said in a statement.

    The digital skills training programme aims to curb rural-to-urban migration by creating local employment and to boost women’s participation in sectors including IT, logistics and finance, officials said.

    Thoothukudi is developing as an industrial centre in Tamil Nadu, and the digital skills training addresses educated unemployment in rural areas, said Alok Varma, HCLFoundation project director.

    HCLTech is a global technology services firm based in Noida, India.