Society is an important stakeholder for a thriving business ecosystem. Societal progress and development are therefore a pre-requisite for the industry to be successful. The onus is therefore on the industry to strive to be sustainable, inclusive and giving at the same time.
Sexual harassment is one issue that has probably plagued every institution, big or small. Unfortunately, it still remains one of the most unreported offences of all times
A one-day workshop on sexual harassment at workplace was organised in Goa. It covered the important aspects of prevention of sexual harassment, its prohibition and redressal. It also explained the role of an Internal Committee (IC) member at the workplace to oversee the implementation of the antisexual harassment policy, deliberate and resolve any sexual harassment at the workplace, and recommend disciplinary actions if any, to the employer
The workshop aimed to help the IC members conduct formal investigation, help them with interviewing tips, legal requirements, drawing conclusions, assessing credibility and deciding on corrective action. It also covered closing procedures, timelines to be followed, penalties for contravention of provisions and tips to write a report.
A session on sharing of best CSR practices on employee volunteerism in CSR and employee engagement was organised in Pune. It helped participants gain an insight into the ways in which companies practice employee volunteerism, and its link to CSR strategy. Practices which support such efforts were highlighted along with suggestions which could be offered.
The programme also aimed at identifying major CSR initiatives undertaken by organisations, driving forces and also exploring new avenues in CSR practice through cross-learning.
The session, ‘Industry-led social transformation through CSR and beyond’ was organised in Kolhapur and Nashik to bring forth the best practices followed by organisations for driving change on the ground, and draw the attention of various stakeholders towards perspectives and facets for creating social and developmental impact
CII Marathwada Zone SME members extended their support to the flood victims in Kerala. The state had witnessed unprecedented rainfall, which resulted in the displacement of thousands of people. The relief material sent to Kerala included items of daily use including soaps, mats, mosquito coils, match boxes and sugar
A consultation session on investing in adolescence for demographic dividends was organised in Surat. Inputs were sought from individuals and discussions were held on the necessary interventions required for adolescents. The programme aimed at guiding local NGOs and spreading awareness on the empowerment of adolescents. The necessity of special focus towards disabled individuals was also stressed upon.
CII MCC, Mumbai, along with Udyog Mantralaya of Maharashtra, organised seven job fairs in the state across Aurangabad, Mumbai, Nagpur, Kolhapur, Nashik, Navi Mumbai and Pune. The objective of the job fair was to reach out to the youth through workshops, portals, job fairs and guide them on training requirements and job opportunities as per their aptitude. The job fair successfully connected job-seekers with job-providers. They collectively saw participation from 523 companies and over 28,000 job seekers. Over 11,000 job offers were generated.
The CII-Model Career Centre, Mumbai, launched the Career Counselling and Rozgar Yatra initiative with an aim to benefit youth in the Konkan region by providing career counselling and job placements. The ‘yatra’ was flagged off by Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu. Two counselling vans travelled across 13 talukas in the Sindhudurg district in Maharashtra where counsellors extended guidance to the youth on jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities in each taluka. The ‘yatra’ lasted for about six days. Around 3,547 youth, including 1,739 girls, were registered and counselled.
CII’s water institute provides integrated solutions to water resource management through the use of scientific and digital tools such as CII’s WATSCAN tool, which links satellite information and on-ground databases and processes information (spatial and temporal) carried in millions of pixels on a GIS platform to facilitate decisions. Application of WATSCAN enables water-smart decisions and intelligent water solutions. In 2017, WATSCAN was applied to Aurangabad district, one amongst the six districts (Jalna, Amravati, Akola, Solapur and Yavatmal) where district watershed assessment has been completed and reports submitted to the government of Maharashtra. The outcomes were presented to diverse stakeholders from both government and industry at a stakeholder meeting that provided directions for taking forward the outcomes in Aurangabad district. Four villages were selected in Paithan Taluk, guided by WATSCAN outcomes, inclusion under government of Maharashtra’s Jalayukt Shivar Abhiyan and Village Social Transformation Mission.
With the objective of implementing suitable water management strategies at the village watershed for the four selected villages in Aurangabad, CII has been working extensively towards the development of a unique digital platform for facilitating decision-making to overcome prevailing water challenges. In the current phase, CII has been working in the villages, applying WATSCAN at the village level. The initiative, supported by Standard Chartered Bank, involves in-depth scientific assessment for strategising water solutions. It involves:
• Identification of appropriate water management strategies, post scientific analysis at the village watershed level through the application of WATSCAN
• Evidence based on on-ground implementation of suitable strategies at viable locations such as water harvesting structures, ie, CNBs Cement Nala Bandharas, gabion structures, recharge shafts, rainwater harvesting systems, etc
• Real-time data capture through automated weather stations at village level, through village panchayats
• Stakeholder engagement and community mobilisation, and enhanced awareness on water management through various training and demonstration sessions
A unique stratigraphic evaluation module has also been built in the WATSCAN tool that enables the identification of potential locations for groundwater recharge interventions. The outcomes from geophysical investigations conducted for specific micro watersheds assess subsurface lithology of the area fed into WATSCAN to identify appropriate locations for undertaking water interventions.
The Skills Training Centre (STC) in Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh, being run in partnership with industry, aims to train local youth to make them employable and create a pool of trained workmen for the industry. The STC has 11 companies offering training in 12 trades. These companies are Toyota, GMR, Larsen & Toubro, JCB, Voltas, Cummins, Shapoorji Pallonji Group, Taj, Hero, Maruti Suzuki and Reliance Foundation. The course duration ranges from 15 days to 5 months. The STC trained over 1,000 youth in 2018-19 and over 6,000 till date. It plans to train at least 1,000 youth in the coming year
An MoU between IOCL (Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. – Gujarat Refinery) and VMC (Vadodara Municipal Corporation) to recycle treated sewage into processed water for industries was signed in June 2018. Twenty million litres per day of city sewage will be used by the IOCL Gujarat Refinery, leading to direct savings in the use of fresh water. The MoU was signed in the presence of the Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani during his visit to Vadodara. As of March 2019, the VMC has aligned this project with the state policy, and final approvals are in process for laying the pipeline infrastructure
The Madhya Matikala Board, established in 2008 under the cottage and village industries department, trains people in pottery-making and also distributes electric pot makers to potters. A 15-day training programme on pottery was organised at the CII STC campus, which benefitted 37 potters. Following a discussion with the officials of the Matikala Board, the CII STC has set a target to train a minimum of 100 individuals in the financial year 2019-20.
Launched in the Western Region in 2014, the Education Excellence Forum (EEF) aims to promote industry-academia collaboration with an objective of addressing the employability gap faced by students graduating from various technical and non-technical institutions in India. Through its various interventions like the faculty development programme, student development programme, leadership workshops for faculty and principals and industry visits and interactions with senior management, EEF has, till date, benefitted over 2,200 students and 500 faculty members.