India Inc Spent Over Rs 1,600 Crore On Mitigating Second Covid Wave: Study

India Inc. has spent over Rs 1,600 crore combating the second wave of Covid-19 in the financial year 2020-21, a study said on Monday.

The study comprising over 350 public listed companies conducted by CSR knowledge and impact intelligence platform -- 'CSRBOX' stated that Indian companies launched over 750 corporate social responsibility initiatives in response to the second wave.

Around 57 per cent of the CSR initiatives to combat the second wave of Covid-19 were targeted at direct beneficiaries Covid-infected people, the report titled 'CSR Response to COVID 2.0' said.

More than 400 of the corporate CSR initiatives to combat the second wave of infections were aimed at procuring medical supplies, ventilators and safety gear like PPE kits.

The recent notification of the ministry of corporate affairs to include COVID-19 response and relief work under schedule VII of CSR catalysed CSR action to mitigate the impact of COVID-19.

"Corporates have responded to COVID with great urgency and remarkable flexibility, fast-tracking CSR project approvals for the timely procurement of essential medical supplies, working in tandem with central, state governments and local agencies," CSRBOX Founder & CEO Bhomik Shah said.

The report found 35 per cent of the interventions were implemented in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh.

The support included over 200 oxygen plants, setting up more than 75 makeshift hospitals and Covid wards with over 10,000 beds, 3,500 ventilators and 140,000 oxygen concentrators.

Importantly, 33 companies contributed more than Rs 150 crore to conduct community awareness activities across 17 states, the report said.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.

We, however, have a request.

As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.

Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.

Digital Editor