India - Corporate Social Responsibility - Bengaluru

Project implemented by WIPRO

Bengaluru, India

January 2011

CSR, also called corporate conscience, corporate citizenship, social performance, or sustainable responsible business (i) is a form of corporate self-regulation integrated into a business model. CSR policy functions as a built-in, self-regulating mechanism whereby businesses monitors and ensures its active compliance with the spirit of the law, ethical standards, and international norms. The goal of CSR is to embrace responsibility for the company's actions and encourage a positive impact through its activities on the environment, consumers, employees, communities, stakeholders and all other members of the public sphere. CSR is not new to India. Companies like TATA and BIRLA have been imbibing the case for social good in their operations for decades long before CSR become a popular cause.

The Azim Premji Foundation has done significant work in the field of education for the past 11 years. WIPRO is one of India's Information Technology giants competing with Indian companies like Infosys, HCL, Satyam. Premji Demonstration Schools provide the opportunity to strengthen the theory- practice linkage and give a purpose to experiment, plan, implement and tackle some core issues or problems that the Indian education system faces, within the context of larger education challenges faced by India. These schools reflect the understanding of the importance of education as one of the most powerful vehicles of social transformation. Education, especially in this context is seen as a process of human interaction and not just as a set of techniques. An environment of opportunities, respect and dignity is given to all in the school and is reflected in policies, working conditions, school culture and practice. Care, tolerance and sensitivity for diversities - dialogue is the approach used to resolve conflicts or ongoing issues.

CSR in India is in a very nascent stage. It is still one of the least understood initiatives in the Indian development sector. It is followed by a handful of public companies as dictated by the very basis of their existence, and by a few private companies, with international shareholding as this is the practice followed by them in their respective foreign country. Thus the situation is far from perfect as the emphasis is not on social good but rather on a policy that needs to be implemented.  In October 2011 the European Commission published a new policy on corporate social responsibility

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In the WIPRO education model, strict guidelines ensure that there is no use of fear as it is detrimental to learning. Memorization is not be the primary form of learning or assessment, assessment does not become an intimidating process that involves the labelling and segregation of students, children are not treated as passive receivers of information and school processes will not lead to boredom and monotonous routines and rituals.

Azim Premji School

This is a school funded by the Azim Premji Foundation (in collaboration with a builder) for children of migrant labor. This was one of their first projects in the education field.