Established as a think tank for the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs was set-up in 2008 to advance thought leadership in the Indian business environment through research, capacity building & advocacy efforts. Since its inception, the IICA continues to attract and train highly talented, innovative, entrepreneurial, ambitious and open-minded leaders in India. Characterized by pedagogical innovation, strong corporate connections and a rigorous academic environment, programmes and initiatives developed at IICA are purpose built to transform our participants to serve as architects of a responsible world. IICA Faculty members originate from all walks of life with some of the best academic and industry exposure from around the world. This promotes the diversity of thought and culture, the open-mindedness and the rigorous intellectual standards that are the core values of IICA. The academic expertise of the core faculty is strengthened by the adjunct professors from industry who share their academic and professional expertise with the program participants.
The School of Business Environment (SBE) is a specialized vertical within IICA promoting the responsible business conduct focusing on the forward-looking areas of Environmental-Social-Governance (ESG), Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Sustainable Finance, Business & Biodiversity Conservation, Business and Human Rights, Responsible Trade, Non-Financial Reporting & Audit and other aligned areas. The School has been providing technical expertise to various Ministries and Agencies of the Govt. of India, State Governments, Corporates, Board Members, professionals and other stakeholders through the research studies, policy inputs and advocacy, advisory services, academic programmes, customized capacity building programmes etc. Few of the important contribution of the School includes developing the National Guidelines on Responsible Business Conduct (NGRBC), Zero Draft of National Action Plan (NAP) on Business & Human Rights, and technical inputs to the High Level Committees on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) for the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
Hon’ble the then President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind during the ceremony of the first National Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Awards of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Govt. of India organized by the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA), announced that henceforth 2nd October may be commemorated as the National CSR Day in India. It was further reiterated by Hon’ble the then Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Shri Rao Indejit Singh to celebrate 2nd October as IICA CSR Day, during the Annual National Conference on Responsible Business Conduct organized by the School of Business Environment, IICA. Accordingly, with the approval of the competent authority, the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs has announced to 2nd October as the IICA CSR Day and has planned to commemorate the first CSR Day in India on 2nd October 2024 through a series of events.
Hon’ble the then President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind during the ceremony of the first National Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Awards of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Govt. of India organized by the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA), announced that henceforth 2nd October may be commemorated as the National CSR Day in India. It was further reiterated by Hon’ble the then Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Shri Rao Indejit Singh to celebrate 2nd October as IICA CSR Day, during the Annual National Conference on Responsible Business Conduct organized by the School of Business Environment, IICA. Accordingly, with the approval of the competent authority, the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs has announced to 2nd October as the IICA CSR Day and has planned to commemorate the first CSR Day in India on 2nd October 2024 through a series of events.
The initiative is pertinent in present time when there seems dearth of philosophical directions towards the way businesses are done. In the new age of responsibility, being responsible today is not an option but it is an unwritten mandate for businesses to be responsible towards society, economy and environment (Dadhich & Atrey, 2024). According to Mahatma Gandhi, “the act of renunciation of everything is not a mere physical renunciation, but represents a second or new birth. It is a deliberate act, not done in ignorance. It is, therefore, a regeneration”. The Trusteeship principle of Mahatma Gandhi shows the world a direction for transition towards socially responsible business practices.
In 2013, India set a global benchmark in by mandating CSR through Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013. Inspired by Gandhian trusteeship principle, this mandate requires eligible companies to allocate 2% of their average net profits towards corporate social responsibility. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) envisioned that the CSR mandate would propel the National Agenda to foster inclusive growth, ensuring social, economic, and environmental well-being through CSR initiatives listed as per Schedule VII of the Companies Act 2013. The CSR mandate in India was enforced during the same time when Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were in final stage of drafts which were adopted by the United Nations in 2015. The SDGs comprise 17 interconnected goals addressing global challenges: poverty, hunger, clean water, clean energy, quality education, gender equality, and climate action. The CSR activities enlisted under the Schedule VII of the Act provide a broad coverage also encompassing areas under SDGs. Over the past decade, the CSR mandate has significantly shaped India’s CSR landscape. The Economic Survey 2023-24 highlights a major milestone in corporate India’s journey towards societal betterment. From 2014 to 2022, companies spent ₹1.53 lakh crore on CSR initiatives. Compliance has grown, with over half the companies exceeding their obligations. In the last three years, annual CSR spending has surpassed ₹25 thousand crore, increasing 1.5 times over eight years.This increase has driven progress in certain thematic areas such as education, healthcare, and environmental sustainability.
International research, including a study by Oxford University, has praised India’s CSR law for fostering strategic community engagement and long-term social project planning. Recent research, such as the CSR Outlook Report 2022, indicates that leading Indian companies naturally align their CSR spending with SDGs. Approximately 80% of these companies invest in health, education, and environmental sustainability for economic growth, directly contributing to SDGs. ‘The G20 Presidency New Delhi Declaration 2023’, also pledges to tackle global challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, trade finance, poverty, inequality, hunger, health, education, digital transformation, and gender equality. These commitments are also aligned with the Schedule VII activities the Companies Act 2013.
Despite these positive trends, the evolving CSR landscape faces several challenges such as compliance, innovation, effective CSR implementation, measurable impact, transparency and accountability, and disparity of CSR spending towards specific regions and thematic areas. The vision behind the CSR law of inclusive growth may need a transition towards more strategic and impactful initiatives, such as need for decentralised and coordinated planning, execution and impact measurement aligned with the local, national and global goals. Such efforts are also crucial for realizing India’s vision of a developed nation by 2047, or ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’. To underscore the critical importance of aligning CSR with SDGs, Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs kick-started the initiative with a High-Level Panel as part of its annual “National Conference on Responsible Business Conduct” held on 14-15 December 2023 in New Delhi. For achieving the goals of sustainable development, alleviating the suffering of deprived and marginalised people, get rid of structural social problems in time-bound manner, to follow a collaborative approach in CSR planning and execution with convergence of Government-Corporate-Civil Society initiatives, to guide the corporate to sustain in new age of responsibility by adopting responsible conduct and being socially responsible, there is a felt need to follow trusteeship model of business.
Within this background, the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (an autonomous institute under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Govt. of India) has designed a ‘National Conference and Exhibition on Aligning CSR with SDGs’ to be held on 02 – 03 October 2024 in New Delhi to commemorate the Annual CSR Day in India on Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi to promote the Trusteeship philosophy.
The colloquium will feature an exhibition on Best Practices of CSR practices, which is expected to be inaugurated by the esteemed dignitaries. This exhibition will showcase exemplary CSR initiatives across various thematic areas aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), playing a crucial role in promoting Global Agenda 2030 and ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’.
This exhibition aims not only to celebrate successful CSR initiatives but also to inspire and guide future efforts, contributing to the progress of sustainable development.
The Exhibition may have a total of 40 to 50 stalls for the exhibitors to showcase their Best practices of CSR. Entities for the exhibition may apply for the exhibition. Registered companies under the Companies Act, 2013/ LLP Act 2008/ Partnership Firms/ Proprietorship/ MSME/ Section 8 companies/ Trusts/ Registered Society/ other Companies may be eligible to submit their application for consideration for the exhibition. The applications received for the Exhibition may be evaluated as per set criteria by the School of Business Environment. Each of the organisations that are selected for the exhibition would bring a team comprising up to three officials of their organisation who can also attend the conference.
IICA would be providing the basic structure of a stall. All the exhibition-related materials like the flyers, branding collaterals, reports, projector, screen, etc. would have to be arranged by the organisation.
S. No. | Sponsorship Types | Amount (INR) | Partnership Benefits |
---|---|---|---|
(i) | Lead Partner | 20,00,000/- |
- Prominent branding as Lead Partner in all conference materials and communications - Opportunity to deliver a special address or lead a high-profile session - Exclusive branding opportunities at prime locations - VIP passes for company representatives and special recognition during the conference (up to 15 passes) - Five Exhibition Stalls space |
(ii) | Associate Partners | 10,00,000/- |
- Recognition as an Associate Partner in conference materials and communications - Opportunity to moderate a panel discussion or host a breakout session. - Complimentary passes for company representatives and acknowledgment during the conference (up to 10 passes). - Three Exhibition Stalls space |
(iii) | Session Partners | 5,00,000/- |
- Branding as Round Table and session Partner in the conference materials and communications. - Opportunity to sponsor and brand a specific session. - Logo placement during the round table and acknowledgment by the roundtable moderator. - Complimentary passes for company representatives. - Two Exhibition stall spaces - Opportunity in the panel as a speaker. |
Type of Delegates | Participation Fee (in INR excluding GST) |
---|---|
Conference (Two-Day Conference) | |
Corporate Professionals and other Delegates | ₹1,500 |
NAIL members/Programme students/SBE programmes Alumni | ₹1,000 |
For "BEST PRACTICES OF CSR" Exhibition stall Registration Please mail us at | ₹15,000 20,000 + 18% GST (for more information please email us at icpcsr@iica.in) |
*The conference and exhibition registration fees are non-refundable and non-adjustable to other events. |
Hon’ble Mr Justice B.R. Gava Hon'ble Judge Supreme Court |
Hon'ble Mr. Justice Madan Bhimarao Lokur Hon'ble Judge Supreme Court |
Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan Union Cabinet Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare; Rural Development Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare |
Dr. Virendra Kumar Union Cabinet Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment |
Shri Harsh Malhotra Ministry of Corporate Affairs MoS: Ministry of Road, Transport & Highways And Ministry of Corporate Affairs |
Ms. Sudha Murthy Infosys Foundation Chairperson |
Mr Andrew Miller KC International Mediator & Arbitrator Member |
Shri Rao Inderjit Singh NITI Aayog Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Ministry of Planning; and Minister of State, Corporate Affairs |
Dr. R A Mahelkar (Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, Padma Shri) Former Director General The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research |
Ms. Deepti Gaur Mukerjee Secretary Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India |
Sh Inder Deep Singh Dhariwal Joint Secretary Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India |
Mrs. Leena Nandan Secretary Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Government of India |
Sh Inder Deep Singh Dhariwal Joint Secretary Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India |
Mr. R. Subrahmanyam Secretary Ministry of Tribal Affairs |
Sh. BVR Subrahmanyam CEO NITI Aayog |
Sh. K. S. Rejimon Joint Secretary / PD(SJ&EA/A) NITI Aayog |
Shri Ali Raza Rizvi Secretary Department of Public Enterprise |
Shri S.C.L. DAS Secretary Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises |
Mr Gurdeep Singh CEO NTPC |
Sh. K. S. Rejimon Chairman & Managing Director NITI Aayog |
Mr Arun Kumar Singh ONGC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer |
Mr S. Suresh Kumar, IAS Chairman DVC |
Mr. R. Subrahmanyam Secretary Ministry of Rural Development |
Mr T V Narendran CEO & Managing Director TATA Steel |
Mr Amitava Mukherjee Chairman-Cum-Managing Director National Mineral Development Corporation |
Mr Govind Mohan, IAS Joint Secretary Ministry of Culture |
Shri Shailesh Kumar Singh Secretary Ministry of Rural Development |
Ms Roshni Nadar Malhotra Chairperson HCL Tech |
Dr. Bhaskar Chatterjee CEO Anil Agarwal Foundation |
Mr. Shombi Sharp UN Resident Coordinator in India UN Resident Coordinator’s Office |
Mr Kailash Satyarthi Secretary General Ministry of Rural Development |
Ms. Kiran Bedi Founder and Chairperson Former 24th Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry Former Director General, Bureau of Police Research and Development Navjyoti and India Vision Foundation |
Mr Anil Agarwal Executive Chairman Vedanta Group and Foundation |
Mr. Anand Mahindra Chairman Mahindra Group |