"Government regulations and public policy tend to bring the bare minimum involvement by the corporate towards their corporate responsibilities. Beyond this legal framework initiatives, corporates should come up voluntari

The Government has been taking a number of initiatives on the legislative front for encouraging companies to adopt CSR activities like – In 2009, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs issued the Corporate Social Responsibility Voluntary Guidelines, 2009 which was a recommendatory initiative to underline that the business sector also needs to take the responsibility of exhibiting socially responsible business practices that ensures the distribution of wealth and well-being of the communities in which the business operates. In 2011, MCA released "National Voluntary Guidelines on Social, Environmental and Economic Responsibilities of Business" to mainstream the subject of business responsibilities. In line with these Guidelines, SEBI mandated inclusion of Business Responsibility Reports ("BR reports") as part of the Annual Reports for listed entities. The Companies Act, 2013 introduced the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility in India to the forefront to promote greater transparency and disclosure. Government regulations and public policy tend to bring the bare minimum involvement by the corporate towards their corporate responsibilities. Beyond this legal framework, corporates should come up voluntarily. The CSR policy of the business entity should provide for an implementation strategy which should include identification of projects/activities, setting measurable physical targets with timeframe, organizational mechanism and responsibilities, time schedules and monitoring. Companies may partner with local authorities, business associations and civil society/non-government organizations. Companies may influence the supply chain for CSR initiative and motivate employees to contribute their efforts on voluntary basis towards social development. Companies may evolve a system of need assessment and impact assessment while undertaking CSR activities in a particular area. Independent evaluation may also be undertaken for selected projects/activities from time to time. Companies may engage with well-established and recognized programmes/ platforms which encourage responsible business practices and CSR activities. This would help companies to improve on their CSR strategies and effectively project the image of being socially responsible. Companies should disseminate information on CSR policy, activities and progress in a structured manner to all their stakeholders and the public at large through their website, annual reports, and other communication media.