What do you understand by a CSR Audit ? Explain its coverage.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) audit help in measuring the actual social performance against the social objectives set by the Company. It also provides that at what level the decision making, mission statement, guiding principles, and business conduct are aligned with social responsibilities. The audit helps meeting the expectations of stakeholder groups relating to social and environmental responsibilities of the company. The CSR audit cover the CSR activities relating to human rights, fundamental human rights, freedom of association and collective bargaining, non-discrimination, forced labor, child labor, health and safety, career development and training, environmental issues and issues relating to community development and social wellbeing. However, the Schedule VII of the Companies Act, 2013 provides the list of activities which could be taken by the company as their CSR activities and cover the following: (i) Eradicating hunger, poverty and malnutrition, promoting health care including preventive health care and sanitation including contribution to the Swach Bharat Kosh set-up by the Central Government for the promotion of sanitation and making available safe drinking water. (ii) Promoting education, including special education and employment enhancing vocation skills especially among children, women, elderly and the differently abled and livelihood enhancement projects. (iii) Promoting gender equality, empowering women, setting up homes and hostels for women and orphans; setting up old age homes, day care centres and such other facilities for senior citizens and measures for reducing inequalities faced by socially and economically backward groups. (iv) Ensuring environmental sustainability, ecological balance, protection of flora and fauna, animal welfare, agro forestry, conservation of natural resources and maintaining quality of soil, air and water including contribution to the Clean Ganga Fund set-up by the Central Government for rejuvenation of river Ganga. (v) Protection of national heritage, art and culture including restoration of buildings and sites of historical importance and works of art; setting up public libraries; promotion and development of traditional art and handicrafts; (vi) Measures for the benefit of armed forces veterans, war widows and their dependents; (vii) Training to promote rural sports, nationally recognized sports, Paralympic sports and Olympic sports (viii) Contribution to the prime minister's national relief fund or any other fund set up by the central govt. for socio economic development and relief and welfare of the schedule caste, tribes, other backward classes, minorities and women; (ix) Contributions or funds provided to technology incubators located within academic institutions which are approved by the central govt. (x) Rural development projects. (xi) Slum area development. (xii) disaster management, including relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction activities." Explanation.- For the purposes of this item, the term 'slum area' shall mean any area declared as such by the Central Government or any State Government or any other competent authority under any law for the time being in force.