With Rs 1,457.13 cr spent under CSR in 3 years, Haryana tops region
Bhartesh Singh Thakur
Chandigarh, March 13
Haryana witnessed the maximum Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) spending in the region from 2018-19 to 2020-21. A total of Rs 1,457.13 crore has been spent under the CSR in Haryana, with Gurugram (22.4%) and Faridabad (7.4 %) getting the maximum share among districts.
The CSR spending during the same period in neighbouring states of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Chandigarh has been Rs 492.66 crore, Rs 262.41 crore, Rs 97.18 crore and Rs 40.23 crore, respectively.
In Gurugram district alone, companies spent Rs 326.31 crore from 2018-19 to 2020-21 and Faridabad got Rs 107.77 crore during the same period. Jhajjar received Rs 93.23 crore, which is 6.4 per cent of the total CSR spending in the state.
The information was shared in the Lok Sabha today in replies to unstarred questions from Sirsa MP Sunita Duggal and Banswara (Rajasthan) MP Kanakmal Katara.
Sirsa received just Rs 13 lakh from 2018-19 to 2020-21, the lowest among all districts. Kaithal received Rs 15 lakh, the second lowest.
Regarding the CSR data for 2021-22, the companies are required to file the same on or before March 31, 2023.
Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013, mandates that every company having a net worth of Rs 500 crore or more, or a turnover of Rs 1,000 crore or more, or a net profit of Rs 5 crore or more during the immediately preceding financial year, need to spend at least 2 per cent of the average net profit made over immediately preceding three financial years towards the CSR. Such firms have to constitute a CSR Committee consisting of three or more directors, of which at least one shall be independent.
Further, Section 135 (9) provides that companies with the CSR obligations below Rs 50 lakh are exempted from constituting a committee. The primary functions of this committee are to formulate and recommend the CSR policy to the company’s board, including the amount of expenditure to be incurred on various activities and monitor the same from time to time.
In Haryana, 783 firms contributed Rs 378.11 crore in 2018-19 while 864 firms spent Rs 536.57 crore in 2019-20. Also, 1,077 companies spent Rs 542.45 crore under the CSR In 2020-21.
If we see sector-wise spending in the state, education got the maximum share at 37 per cent. A total of Rs 538.85 crore has been spent on education from 2018-19 to 2020-21. It is followed by healthcare where Rs 326.48 crore has been spent (22.4 per cent). Further, Rs 123.61 crore was spent on vocational skills and Rs 104.12 crore on sanitation.
