Blog

Jaipur Rugs, the iconic family-run business, has been working towards bridging the gap between the weaver at the grassroots and the urban consumers through the revival of the dying art of carpet weaving. The brand, led by founder NK Chaudhary, envisions a society where equality

Jaipur Rugs, the iconic family-run business, has been working towards bridging the gap between the weaver at the grassroots and the urban consumers through the revival of the dying art of carpet weaving. The brand, led by founder NK Chaudhary, envisions a society where equality, justice and peace prevail through socio-economic development.

Jaipur Rugs’ key aim has been to provide opportunities for all, with the insurgent mission to serve as a social innovator promoting the cause of artisans by providing them with job opportunities, resulting in an uplifted rural society. As an inclusive development practitioner committed to promoting creativity everywhere it goes, especially in places where others are reluctant to venture, Jaipur Rugs is working with close to 100 inmates across Jaipur Central Jail, Bikaner Central Jail and Dausa Central Jail to provide them with meaningful and fulfilling work by teaching them the art of carpet weaving.

Crime tends to go hand-in-hand with poverty and illiteracy, and imprisonment makes the lives of the families of inmates even more difficult, especially if the one incarcerated is the breadwinner. One way to change this destructive cycle is economic empowerment. Jaipur Rugs feels that the capacity to imagine brings motivation, which then adds to the prestige and prosperity of individuals if nurtured appropriately.

“Let goodness, fairness and, most importantly, love prevail in business. Profits will inevitably follow,” says NK Chaudhary, Founder, Jaipur Rugs Company.

“This innovative initiative by Jaipur Rugs and the Prison Department is much needed. Through this, prison inmates are trained in rug weaving and production and their efforts get appreciated globally, leading the way for reformations. The earnings from this initiative help the families of the inmates. Additionally, 25% of the earned income goes to the victim’s families,” says Rakesh Mohan, Jail Superintendent, Jaipur Central Jail.

Jaipur Rugs also helps inmates open bank accounts to receive payments for their work directly, which makes it easy for them and their families to access their earnings. Ordinarily, inmates are given work that lacks a purpose to keep them occupied. It undermines their potential and eventually leads to an inability and unwillingness to work. Through the initiative by Jaipur Rugs, in which training and workshops are conducted and a source of income is generated, these inmates get access to socio-economic development and are empowered through support and sustainable livelihood.

The Freedom Manchaha collection is an ode to these inmates who want to express themselves creatively and still support their families through the odds.

Myntra, India’s leading fashion and lifestyle destination collaborates with Teach For Change, of which famous Tollywood Actor-Producer Lakshmi Manchu is the Trustee and Chairperson. Through this partnership Myntra is supporting the less privileged children

Myntra, India’s leading fashion and lifestyle destination collaborates with Teach For Change, of which famous Tollywood Actor-Producer Lakshmi Manchu is the Trustee and Chairperson. Through this partnership Myntra is supporting the less privileged children from various government schools across Hyderabad to spread cheer and positivity in their lives.

As part of this initiative, clothes and footwear by Myntra were distributed among 1000 children by the actor The children are beneficiaries under the Teach For Change program, an initiative to improve literacy and life skills among children studying in government schools.

Commenting on this initiative, Lakshmi Manchu, Trustee and Chairman said “I am thrilled to collaborate with Myntra to bring smiles among these children and hope they enjoy the clothes that we have curated. I had a great time distributing these boxes to the children personally. I hope that schools reopen soon and the children are back in the classroom.”

Speaking on the occasion, Amar Nagaram, CEO Myntra, said, “It is our honour to be able to
serve the children associated with Teach For Change. We feel fortunate to get the opportunity to extend a small, yet meaningful support and bring cheer to these children. This effort is truly in line with our vision of ‘making the world a colourful and happier place’ and we are extremely proud of it.”

Mirchi, a brand that has always believed in spreading happiness, has launched its third edition of The Happiness Project, with an aim to help the economically weaker section of the society during the chilly winters

Mirchi, a brand that has always believed in spreading happiness, has launched its third edition of The Happiness Project, with an aim to help the economically weaker section of the society during the chilly winters.

Through this campaign, Mirchi 95 encouraged its listeners to do their bit by purchasing fleece jackets, from their project partner – Decathlon, and donating them for the cause. It also collaborated with the Robin Hood Army who helped execute this project by identifying relevant NGOs and distributing 1,593 jackets across the city of Bengaluru.

While the year 2020 was difficult for all, the ones most affected were the unorganized as well as the economically challenged sector. And the sharp drop in temperatures in the city, only made their situation worse.

Thus, Mirchi 95 embarked on an initiative to support these affected individuals through their flagship Happiness Project. The campaign kick-started on January 13, with some of the city’s most influential radio celebrities like Mirchi Jimmy, Mirchi Sarah, Mirchi Vijji and Mirchi Riddhi spreading the word and encouraging their listeners to partake by logging on to the Decathlon website and purchasing jackets that would be used for the donation drive.

At the end of a successful two-week-long campaign, Mirchi 95 in collaboration with Robin Hood Army reached out to 6 slums like HSR in Gurukul, Koramangala in LR Nagar, Whitefield in Pillekamma Devi Temple, to name a few, distributing warm jackets and spreading smiles.

The Shree Cement corporate social responsibility (CSR) support for the senior citizens project Pronam got a boost in Kolkata with the formal inauguration of a fully-equipped office by the Kolkata Commissioner of Police, Anuj Sharma, IPS, in the presence

The Shree Cement corporate social responsibility (CSR) support for the senior citizens project Pronam got a boost in Kolkata with the formal inauguration of a fully-equipped office by the Kolkata Commissioner of Police, Anuj Sharma, IPS, in the presence of film director Goutam Ghose and other dignitaries.

Pronam project for senior citizens is a unique community-service model in India for the senior citizens of Kolkata. Pronam is run by Kolkata Police in collaboration with city-based non-governmental organization (NGO) The Bengal and Shree Cement has been supporting it since its inception in 2010.

Currently, Pronam has nearly 20,000 registered senior citizens on its roll and there is a huge demand to expand its sphere and cover more senior citizens. During corona, Pronam volunteers provided medicines and essential services to the elderly who were left on their own.

“The Pronam project has grown over the years and reached out to the senior citizens of the city providing security and moral support. The coronavirus outbreak has posed a serious question mark on the well-being of senior citizens in Kolkata, especially those who live by themselves. Many elderly residents of Kolkata have children working outside the city or country and are hard up to carry out the daily chores like going to the market or doctors. The Pronam staff with the help of Kolkata Police personnel have stood by the elderly during these trying times,” said Industrialist Hari Mohan Bangur, Chairman of The Bengal and Managing Director of Shree Cement, in a message.

Pronam is one of the largest outreach programmes in the eastern region for the elderly with Kolkata Police and The Bengal providing logistical support. The new office or Emergency Coordination Room for Senior Citizens would go a long way in reducing the turnaround time for catering to the needs of the elderly in the city. The Kolkata Police has a dedicated Senior Citizen Helpline Number for the elderly to call on and report their problem. The Pronam office works 24 hours with the helpline 03324190740.

On average, Pronam receives close to 1000 applications each month from senior citizens seeking membership. Currently, senior citizens above the age of 60 years living within the jurisdiction of Kolkata are eligible for Pronam membership under certain criteria.

Keeping in mind the need for extensive COVID-19 testing, Ericsson India Global Services Pvt. Ltd. (Ericsson) has joined hands with Smile Foundation to support government initiatives towards collecting Covid test samples for testing

Keeping in mind the need for extensive COVID-19 testing, Ericsson India Global Services Pvt. Ltd. (Ericsson) has joined hands with Smile Foundation to support government initiatives towards collecting Covid test samples for testing at designated Government labs in Chennai and Pune. The same will support in terms of speeding up Covid testing in these cities.

Ericsson has been supporting Smile on Wheels, mobile medical units of Smile Foundation, in four locations: Noida, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Gurgaon and Ericsson E-Health Clinics in Pune and Chennai. Both organizations are committed to providing quality healthcare services at the doorstep of the underserved communities free of cost in order to support the secondary and tertiary healthcare outreach of the government. Over the past five years, approx. 5 lacs underserved people have benefitted through Smile on Wheels as part of this partnership and in the coming years, the number of beneficiaries from this program will grow manifold.

As the demand for healthcare professionals is increasing, this partnership aims to skill more than 5,000 youth in the age group of 18-30 years as healthcare professionals namely General Duty Assistant and other allied healthcare services. A total of 40 Ericsson skill development centres in Chennai, Bengaluru, Delhi, Pune and Kolkata have been set up to train youth from slums. Over the past 5 years, Ericsson and Smile Foundation has touched lives of approx. 25000 youth and placed approx. 15000 informal sector jobs.

Amitabh Ray, MD, Ericsson India Global Services says,” Our partnership with Smile Foundation has evolved to include a fresh focus on COVID’19, both in terms of healthcare services to underserved communities as well as skill-building. We want to complement and strengthen the Government’s healthcare initiatives against the pandemic in terms of emergency response as well as skill-building of the youth living in slum clusters.”

Santanu Mishra, Co-founder and Trustee, Smile Foundation, said, “Smile recognizes the urgent need for a robust healthcare ecosystem. It is our privilege to join hands with Ericsson in this unique initiative for enhancing the reach of government in collecting samples of covid-19 patients and complementing the efforts of the government in providing primary healthcare services and Skill-India Mission. We have been associated with Ericsson for five years now, and we aim at supporting India’s healthcare systems and the upcoming generation by employing tools of telemedicine and engaging the youth of the country.”

RCC Diva Foundation in association with Terapanth Yuvak Parishad is organizing a Hair Donation drive for the benefit of cancer patients. The objective of the dry is to give dignity to the patients who lose their hair while undergoing treatment for cancer

RCC Diva Foundation in association with Terapanth Yuvak Parishad is organizing a Hair Donation drive for the benefit of cancer patients.

The objective of the dry is to give dignity to the patients who lose their hair while undergoing treatment for cancer by providing them with wigs.

The wigs will provide self-confidence, strength and ray of hope for recovering cancer patients who are struggling with the emotional challenges of hair loss due to cancer.

So far 200 plus people have donated hair in the last one and a half years and today we had 120 donors at the event conducted at Hotel Beverly in presence of our chief guest and other members.

The Hair donation drive is open for the general public and we appeal to the people to be part of the healing process by donating their hair for the noble cause.

The only criteria are that Hair’s should be a minimum of 8 Inches or More. And Terapanth Yuvak Parishad is very happy to be part of this noble endeavour and the youth wing of this organization will strive to spread the message across the nation.

The Chief Guest of the occasion will be Shri Har Sahay Meena I.A S (Principal Secretary to Government, Personnel & Administrative Reforms (Trg) Department, Guest of Honor is International beauty pageant Miss India 2019 Winner Ms Suman Rao. The event will be presided by Shri. N.Sugalchandsa Jain (Co-Chairman Cancer Institute Adyar & Founder Member Jain Medical Relief Society Chennai) & Keynote Speaker will be Dr Harish Saklecha (Associate Professor Radiation Oncologist Cancer Institute Adyar).

The six-pack budget proposed by the Finance Minister encompasses the true spirit of sustainable and equal growth. The push for the health sector and the skilling space with tie-ups with UAE and Japan, to begin with, will go a long way

“The six-pack budget proposed by the Finance Minister encompasses the true spirit of sustainable and equal growth. The push for the health sector and the skilling space with tie-ups with UAE and Japan, to begin with, will go a long way. The focus on revamping the health infrastructure, the push for aggressive disinvestment with LIC’s IPOs, Tax holiday for start-up, expansion & strengthening of nameless faceless IT along with the revision of years are something to be applauded. Although tax slab revisions & further involvement of the private sector in the COVID vaccination distribution is something that could have also been looked at. Overall it was a well-balanced budget given the fiscal deficit constraints”

SEED CSR is India’s leading integrated CSR implementing agency offering a range of services to businesses across sectors that include energy, banking, financial services & insurance (BFSI), oil & gas, steel & mines, cement, infrastructure, manufacturing, IT & ITES, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, aviation, healthcare, hospitality and logistics, amongst others.

Set up as a Registered Society in the year 2006, SEED CSR has today grown into a large and trusted brand that specialises in implementing CSR projects for companies, both in the public and private sector. A committed team supports the top leadership to achieve the overall vision of ensuring equitable growth and opportunities for those living in hard-to-reach areas as marginalised and disadvantaged population groups.

As India celebrated its 72nd Republic Day, Harpic Mission Paani hosted its first Waterthon celebrating the country’s water heroes. The 8-Hour long Waterthon brought together leading policymakers, celebrities from all walks of life, the Armed Forces and corporates

As India celebrated its 72nd Republic Day, Harpic Mission Paani hosted its first Waterthon celebrating the country’s water heroes. The 8-Hour long Waterthon brought together leading policymakers, celebrities from all walks of life, the Armed Forces and corporates to address the criticality of water for hygiene and conservation.

India’s largest Waterthon witnessed a series of thought-provoking sessions deliberating on efficient solutions and the need to prioritize efforts towards water conservation. Mission Paani has partnered with WWF-India and Swarovski Waterschool to mobilise their Waterschool curriculum for encouraging early water conservation habits in children.

Laxman Narasimhan, Global CEO, Reckitt Benckiser Group commented, “Hosting India’s largest Waterthon on Republic Day is highly symbolic and a matter of pride for us at RB. People from all walks of life have come together today on the Harpic Mission Paani platform, united towards a common goal of saving water. This day has celebrated India’s water heroes who have selflessly led and addressed the criticality of water for hygiene. We are hopeful that Harpic with its key initiatives will successfully drive behaviour change towards water conservation and hygiene with Mission Paani.”

Speaking on building purpose-led brands, Harold van den Broek, President, RB Hygiene said “At RB, we are pioneers of Health, Hygiene and Nutrition and we deliver our purpose- to protect heal and nurture in the relentless pursuit of a cleaner and healthier world. Our brands like Harpic, Finish and Lysol have been at the forefront of driving behaviour change. We are committed to building brands with purpose with a clearly defined fight that is linked to key societal issues in line with UN’s defined Sustainability Development Goals.”

Actor and Mission Paani Ambassador, Akshay Kumar said, “Water is a wealth we have to conserve. The demand for water will rise by 40 per cent in the next 9 years, which is something we will not be able to fulfil. Add to that, there are chances of a water crisis taking place in 28% of the country for which we all will be responsible. At the rate that humanity is going, in the next 100 years, we will finish all the water available. Water can be sold at the rate of gold, it can even be costlier. We might even see a war on it. There might come a time where there won’t be rivers, lakes. We will struggle to even find a drop. It is the need of the hour for us to take a pledge to save water so that we can live a life of a better tomorrow.”

At the event, Narasimhan Eswar, Senior Vice President, South Asia, RB Hygiene, said, “Saving water is now more important than ever before. The pandemic has taught us that high levels of sanitation and hygiene are essential for all sections of society. Harpic Mission Paani is a defining people’s movement, aimed at creating a more direct impact on water, hygiene and sanitation. Our aim with Harpic Mission Paani’s ‘Swachhta aur Paani’ campaign is to increase awareness and encourage citizens on the urgency for efficient usage and conservation of water as well as hygienic sanitation.”

Sukhleen Aneja, CMO & Marketing Director, RB Hygiene, South Asia said, “Children hold the key to our future and are hence the best evangelists for Mission Paani. With Harpic’s Mission Paani we wish to bring about a lasting behaviour change. Last year, we released the Water anthem co-created with legendary AR Rahman and rendered by an all children’s choir urging India on the need for using water responsibly. This year Mission Paani has partnered with WWF and Swarovski School of Water to launch and has mobilised the water curriculum focused on teaching children the importance of water conservation from an early stage.”

Yellow Class, India’s largest hobby class platform for kids, embarked on a new journey of Corporate Social Responsibility and has announced the launch of its first campaign – ‘Joy of Giving’. Committed to contributing to the kids’ learning and growth outside

Yellow Class, India’s largest hobby class platform for kids, embarked on a new journey of Corporate Social Responsibility and has announced the launch of its first campaign – ‘Joy of Giving’. Committed to contributing to the kids’ learning and growth outside the school ecosystem, the campaign inculcates the right values in young children by making them understand the value of food and sharing it with the underprivileged.

Yellow Class has collaborated with Dipannita Sharma – a renowned Indian actress and model, and Donate A Meal NGO. The campaign began with a flameless cooking session organized by Yellow Class on the eve of 26th January 2021. The kids participated in the session donated the prepared meal to those in need.

Delighted with the announcement of the CSR initiative, Mr Anshul Gupta, CEO of Yellow Class said, “We are a doers’ platform. We just don’t only teach kids to do good, but also create opportunities to instil the right values in them. We are excited about the encouraging response to our Republic Day Campaign from kids & parents across the country. We are overwhelmed with such kind of support from the parents. Kids experienced the joy of giving.”

An estimated 5,000 kids from across the country participated in the campaign. Each participant donated one or more meal portions as a gesture of care for society.

While donating the meal, all safety precautions were taken by the kids and social distancing norms were followed. Furthermore, the kids participated in the campaign received an appreciation certificate from Yellow Class.

Commvault, a global enterprise software leader in data management and data protection, has partnered with Akshaya Patra Foundation, India’s largest mid-day meal implementation partner, to provide nutritious meals to school children studying in Government

Commvault, a global enterprise software leader in data management and data protection, has partnered with Akshaya Patra Foundation, India’s largest mid-day meal implementation partner, to provide nutritious meals to school children studying in Government and Government-aided schools across India. The food distribution vehicle, called The Blue Bus, donated by Commvault, will help Akshaya Patra to feed 2,000 students across 25 schools every day, located in and around Vrindavan (Mathura) in Uttar Pradesh.

The partnership underlines Commvault’s commitment to give back to the communities we work and live in, by supporting numerous causes such as, reducing global hunger, promoting education, providing technological resources and championing equality.

“Our goal is to eliminate classroom hunger and attract more children to schools by feeding a filling, nutritious mid-day meal, every school day. The food distribution vehicle enables us to deliver hopes, dreams and of course, smiles with the meals that it carries to numerous schools across the country,” said Shri Madhu Pandit Das, Chairman, The Akshaya Patra Foundation.

The blue bus is a customised transport vehicle specially designed to deliver food that is packed in stainless steel 304 Grade vessels, which can keep food hot and fresh even when the distance between the source and destination is over 40 kilometres. Vessels are designed to avoid spillage and the design of the vehicle ensures optimum use of space for carrying sufficient quantities of all the items on the menu.

“We, at Commvault, are intentional about real-life priorities and take nothing for granted. The pandemic has impacted millions, especially children, causing severe hunger and malnutrition, to the most vulnerable. Given this we are proud to support Akshaya Patra as they deliver essential nutrition for our childrens’ overall growth and development as they go back to school,” said Ramesh Kalanje, Vice President, Center of Excellence, Commvault.

“We make conscious and collaborative decisions to reinvest in our communities. Only by taking the opportunities– from healthcare or education to sustainability or sanitation – can we really do this. It is the embodiment of what our values mean in reality,” said Ramesh Mamgain, Country Manager-India & SAARC, Commvault.

A strong proponent of corporate citizenship, Commvault recognizes the role we can all play in driving our people, communities and planet towards a brighter tomorrow. Through initiatives such as Teach for India, PM Cares Fund, United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Wellness Warriors and more, we foster the belief that operating in a fiscally, environmentally, and socially responsible manner is more than a responsibility – it is a priority.