Wipro has spent a significant 60 per cent part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) budget in 2019-20 on skill development programmes linked to IT industry. Out of the total CSR spent of Rs 181.3 Crore, the spend on IT related skill development programme stood out at Rs 116.7 Crore.
The skill development programmes through the CSR activities of Wipro were conducted in the city of Bangalore. Other part of the company’s CSR activities included projects related to Environment Sustainability and rural development.
Exceeding prescribed CSR budget
In the financial year 2019-20, the company exceeded its prescribed CSR budget of Rs 166.9 crore.
"The prescribed CSR Expenditure, calculated as the 2% of the average profit before tax in the last three preceding financial years amounted to Rs 1,66.9 crore. Against this, our CSR spending for 2019-20 was Rs 1,81.8 crore," the company stated in its annual report for the financial year 2019-20.
The company has been consistently spending more than Rs 180 crore in each of the last three financial years. In the year, 2018-19, it has spent a total of Rs 85.3 crore on various CSR activities.
As per the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013, a company shall spend at least 2% of its average net profits for three immediately preceding financial years towards CSR activities.
Further, in addition to annual CSR spends, the company committed a total of Rs 100 crore towards tackling the unprecedentedhealth and humanitarian crisis arising from the COVID-19pandemic outbreak.
"This is intended to help in enabling the dedicated medical and service fraternity in the front line of the battle against the pandemic and in mitigating its wide-ranging human impact, particularly on the most disadvantaged of our society," the company officials said.
Below are the CSR areas that Wipro has been working on:
Primary Health Care: The company works with partners who provide quality primary health care services to extremely disadvantaged communities in Nagaland, West Bengal, Karnataka, Delhi and Maharashtra. Through our projects we address the issues related to maternal and child health, adolescent health, nutrition,community hygiene and sanitation, preventive and curative care,health education &counselling.
Disaster Rehabilitation: Starting with the Gujarat earthquake in 2001, the company has responded to several natural calamities wherein Wipro’s employees have also risen to the occasion. In past two years, the company has initiated disaster rehabilitation programs for Kerala floods in 2018 and Cyclonic Storm Fani in 2019.
Community Ecology: The project in agro-forestry in rural Tamil Nadu help farmers in effectively implementing integrated farming practices. The company’s projects in urban solid waste management at Bengaluru and Mysore provides comprehensive skills upgradation and social, nutritional and health security to workers in the informal sector of waste management.
"Our focus is on augmenting the capacity of our healthcare system to respond effectively at scale, with the urgency the situation demands. We are working with a network of partner organizations on a whole range of interventions starting from the first line of defense like the supply of sanitizers, masks and other essentials, to supporting the build-up of capacity in our health systems -such as Personal Protection Equipment (PPEs), Testing Kits, Ventilators, Isolation Units etc," the company stated.
The company’ CSR projects are undertaken in an integrated manner by Wipro, Wipro Enterprises Pvt Ltd. and the Azim Premji Foundation.
