India Inc’s CSR pandemic spend crosses ~7.5K cr

57% of amount went to PM CARES Fund

Some of the largest spenders on corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects have allocated a bulk of their funds to addressing concerns triggered by Covid-19.

They have announced allocations of at least ~7,537 crore, according to an analysis that was part of a report released by rating agency

CRISIL’S charitable arm

CRISIL Foundation.

It analysed 130 companies, of which 113 were found to have promised support — either monetarily or through donation of cash or kind

— to mitigate the effects of the pandemic, such as masks, sanitizers, personal protective equipment, and food and rations. Around 57 per cent of the amount — which can be classified under the head CSR — went to the PM CARES Fund.

“Interestingly, the 130 companies analysed by CRISIL accounted for nearly 80 per cent of the total

CSR spend by all listed companies in 2018-19 (FY19). Assuming other companies would have followed a similar path, India Inc has already allocated over 80 per cent of the annual CSR budget to address the pandemic. This could impact spending on other CSR projects this financial year,” said Maya Vengurlekar, chief operating officer, CRISIL Foundation, in statement accompanying the report.

For example, in FY19, nearly three-fourth of all CSR funds was spent on education and skill development, health care and sanitation, and rural development projects.

According to CRISIL, 1,276 listed companies had spent around ~11,400 crore in CSR activities in FY19.