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Executive Summary

I was placed for CSR project in DESH SEVA SAMITI which is located in

Bhagat Singh Nagar , GOREGAON (W).

Its an NGO which is a strictly non-profit organization, deeply committed

to social work.

My learning experience with DESH SEVA SAMITI begins with me

joining in the month of October.

As a CSR, I spent good time in learning and was rewarded for my

best efforts, learnt to deal with different situations, had experience of

working which effects an employee performance and attitude towards

work, had good time in learning and performing as one of the best CSR in

the campaign.

Confidence, consistency, hard work, teamwork, seeking success out

of dark, innovation, creativity are the key learnings out of my

project And I would like to say that it will be one of my best skill that

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would

remain with me and help me in the coming life which offer many

challenges.

I would like to highlight this, that my experience with DESH

SEVA SAMITI was very memorable and full of learnings, where I found

a lot of positive changes in my attitude, learning and behavior.

We helped the children of the association, by teaching them and

solving any problems they had in studies.

With the growing population and reducing resources, there are section of

the society that are well to do and can afford all the amenities, luxuries,

quality education and the basic as well as advance knowledge that one

should have or is rightly entitled of. But at the same time there is that part

of the society which is not well to do, is facing a problem with scarcity in

resources, finance and unfortunate in receiving all those luxuries and the

basic amenities of life. The gap between have and have not is widening on

a day to day basis. Fortunately for this section of society there are few

corporate who under corporate social responsibility

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WHAT IS CSR

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development in its

publication "Making Good Business Sense" by Lord Holme and Richard

Watts, used the following definition. "Corporate Social Responsibility is

the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and

contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of

the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and

society at large"

The same report gave some evidence of the different perceptions of what

this should mean from a number of different societies across the world.

Definitions as different as

"CSR is about capacity building for sustainable livelihoods. It respects

cultural differences and finds the business opportunities in building the

skills of employees, the community and the government" from Ghana,

through to "CSR is about business giving back to society" from the

Phillipines.

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INTRODUCTION TO CSR

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become an inescapable

priority for business leaders across the globe. Governments, activists

and the media have become adept at holding companies to account for

the social consequences of their actions and there is a large and

growing community of international, regional and national organizations

working on sustainable development issues, both in the public and private

sectors.

It is no surprise then that firms are grappling on strategic, tactical and

operational levels to identify ways to meet societys demands, this

in combination with achieving company performance targets.

This paper first sets a definition of CSR as an extended model of

corporate governance and then accounts for a voluntary approach to

CSR, meant as voluntary compliance with CSR strategic management

standards, in terms of an economic theory of self-regulation based on the

concepts of social contract, reputation and reciprocal conformism.

Various forms of self-regulatory practices which are applied on a

discretionary basis are explored in this paper, arguing that while

incomplete contracts and imperfect knowledge debar form resorting to

reputation effects in order to support discretional self-regulation, on the

contrary an explicit standard for CSR strategic management, both

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publicly shared by stakeholders and firms through social dialogue -

make it possible to put again at work the reputation mechanism

inducing endogenous incentives of compliance with a voluntary

standard; the result being that stakeholders are encouraged to trust in

the firms practices and commitment to CSR.

It is argued that CSR can be a potent source of innovation and

competitive advantage. Those firms typically investing in socially

responsible practices, both in ways that solve pressing social issues

and improve the firms competitive edge using the same frameworks

that guide their core business choices, are discovering that CSR can be

much more than a cost, a constraint or a charitable deed; it can be an

enabler for competitive advantage.

Finally, this paper reveals how those companies that have embraced

CSR becoming part of the solution are setting the standards for

others to follow and, in some cases, through their global supply chains

are taking action where dialogues have failed. In return such firms have

found significant competitive advantages in the form of improved

financial performance, enhanced brand image and reputation and

attractiveness to increasingly sophisticated institutional investors.

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CSR in India

Corporate Social Responsibility Practices in India sets a realistic agenda

of grassroots development through alliances and partnerships with

sustainable development approaches. At the heart of solution lies intrinsic

coming together of all stakeholders in shaping up a distinct route for an

equitable and just social order....

Indu Jain

Chairperson, The Times of India Group

New Delhi

The corporate social responsibility wing of the Bennett, Coleman & CO.

Ltd., in partnership with TNS India and IRRAD undertook a national

survey to understand the underlying dynamics of CSR and the current

situation in India.

CSR is not new to India, companies like TATA and BIRLA have been

imbibing the case for social good in their operations for decades long

before CSR become a popular cause. Inspite of having such life size

successful examples, CSR in India is in a very nascent stage. It is still one

of the least understood initiatives in the Indian development sector. It is

followed by a handful of public companies as dictated by the very basis of

their existence, and by a few private companies, with international

shareholding as this is the practice followed by them in their respective

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foreign country. Thus the situation is far from perfect as the emphasis is not

on social good but rather on a policy that needs to be implemented.

A lack of understanding, inadequately trained personnel, non-availability of

authentic data and specific information on the kinds of CSR activities,

coverage, policy etc. further adds to the reach and effectiveness of CSR

programmes. But the situation is changing. And CSR is coming out of the

purview of doing social good and is fast becoming a business necessity.

The business case for CSR is gaining ground and corporate houses are

realizing that what is good for workers - their community, health, and

environment is also good for the business.

Corporate Social Responsibility Practices - the survey on CSR is timely

and apt. The survey is expected to facilitate formation of an alliance of

CSR initiatives so that such initiatives can be further stream lined, focused

and converged to a powerful force of intervention. One of the major

objectives of the survey is to bring out in open the current status of CSR

thereby giving both the NGOs and the common man an understanding of

the various initiatives undertaken by corporates and the role that is played

by the government in the field.

The survey underlines the various issues - current CSR policies, major

stakeholders - their current and future plans, geographical areas covered,

role of civil society and government, challenges, recommendations etc

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An Introduction to Non-Governmental

Organizations (NGO)

The term, "non-governmental organization" or NGO, came into use in 1945

because of the need for the UN to differentiate in its Charter between

participation rights for intergovernmental specialized agencies and those

for international private organizations. At the UN, virtually all types of

private bodies can be recognized as NGOs. They only have to be

independent from government control, not seeking to challenge

governments either as a political party or by a narrow focus on human

rights, non-profit-making and non-criminal. As of 2003, there were

reportedly over 20,000 NGOs active in Iran. The majority of these

organizations are charity organizations, and thus would not fall under the

category of development-oriented NGOs. In this document the term NGO

is primarily used for organizations other than charitable organizations. The

structures of NGOs vary considerably. With the improvement in

communications, more locally-based groups, referred to as grass-roots

organizations or community based organizations, have become active at the

national or even the global level. Increasingly this occurs through the

formation of coalitions with other NGOs for particular goals, such as was

the case in the case of the Bam earthquake for example. A civil society is

composed of three sectors: government, the private sector and civil society,

excluding businesses. NGOs are components of social movements within a

civil society. In the case of Iran, where civil society is not yet mature,

NGOs can have an important role in strengthening the foundations of an

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emergent civil society. The issue of independence is an important one in

the credibility of an NGO. It is hard for NGOs not to come under any

governmental influence. Individual governments do at times try to

influence the NGO community in a particular field, by establishing NGOs

that promote their policies. This has been recognized by quite common use

of the acronym GONGO, to label a government-organized NGO. Also, in

more authoritarian societies, NGOs may find it very difficult to act

independently and they may not receive acknowledgment from other

political actors even when they are acting independently. On the other

hand, development and humanitarian relief NGOs need substantial

resources, to run their operational programs, so most of them readily accept

official funds.

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What is a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)?

NGOs can be distinguished into two groups: Operational and advocacy

NGOs. This may be interpreted as the choice between small-scale change

achieved directly through projects and large-scale change promoted

indirectly through influence on the political system. Operational NGOs

have to mobilize resources, in the form of financial donations, materials or

volunteer labor, in order to sustain their projects and programs. This

process may require quite complex organization. Finance obtained from

grants or contracts, from governments, foundations or companies, require

time and expertise spent on planning, preparing applications, budgeting,

accounting and reporting. Major fund-raising events require skills in

advertising, media relations and motivating supporters. Thus, operational

NGOs need to possess an efficient headquarters bureaucracy, in addition to

the operational staff in the field. Advocacy NGOs will carry out much the

same functions, but with a different balance between them. Fund-raising is

still necessary, but on a smaller scale and it can serve the symbolic function

of strengthening the donors' identification with the cause. Persuading

people to donate their time is necessary, but, in addition to a small number

of people giving a great deal of time, it is also necessary to be able to

mobilize large numbers for brief periods. External donors may not impose

onerous administrative burdens, but supporters still have to be supplied

with information on an efficient regular basis. Major events will aim to

attract favorable publicity rather than raise funds. Therefore, despite their

differences, both operational and advocacy NGOs need to engage in fund-

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raising, mobilization of work by supporters, organizing special events,

cultivating the media and administering a headquarters. Only the defining

activities implementing projects or holding demonstrations serve to

differentiate them. In reality, the distinctions are not as sharp as the labels

suggest. Operational NGOs often move into advocacy when projects

regularly face similar problems and the impact of the projects seems to be

insufficient. All the large development and environment operational NGOs

now run some regular campaigns, at least by supporting campaigning

networks. Similarly, advocacy NGOs often feels they cannot ignore the

immediate practical problems of people in their policy domain. Human

rights NGOs and women's NGOs end up having programs to assist the

victims of discrimination and injustice.

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Types of NGOs

In the case of Iran, NGOs can have an active role in the following areas:

Community Health Promotion and Education

Contraception and Intimacy Education

General Hygiene

Waste Disposal

Water Usage

Vaccinations

Youth Counseling Services

Emerging health crises

HIV/AIDS education and support

Hepatitis B education

Drug Addiction recovery

Community Social Problems

Juvenile crimes

Runaway girls

Street Children

Prostitution

Environmental

Sustainable water and energy consumption education

Keeping mountains and forests clean

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Economic

Microenterprises and Micro-loans

Skill training (Computers, technician training, Catering services,

clothing and textile, etc.)

Product promotion and distribution (Bazaars etc.)

Cooperative creation

Financial consulting

Range of NGO Activities

Career services and job search assistance Development

School construction

Infrastructure construction

Cultural center construction and operation

Agriculture and Aquaculture expert assistance Womens Issues

Women and Childrens Rights

Battered women assistance center

Group therapy for sexually abused women

Counseling hotlines (telephone-based counseling services for

women)

Legal assistance to women

Literacy drives

There is a growing need for nonprofit and non-governmental organizations

(NGOs) throughout the world to be more effective and productive. One the

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many ways they are achieving this is by broadening and strengthening the

constitution of their Boards. An increase in the effectiveness of NGO board

itself has been achieved by bringing together organizations and leaders

with a shared interest in the work of boards; building capacity by training;

and developing management and governance tools. Having a good and

effective NGO Board provides a basis for successful management of its

organization; familiarizes its target constituents with the activities of the

NGO; help in better understanding the organizational structure of the NGO,

and also assists in distributing responsibilities among the team members

within the NGO organization.

An NGO Board may be called by different names - 'Board of Directors;

'Steering Committee'

'Advisory Group' etc. The term 'Board' is used collectively and

interchangeably to mean all these names.

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History of NGO Activity in India

India has a long history of civil society based on the concepts of daana

(giving) and seva (service). Voluntary organizations3organizations that

are voluntary in spirit and without profit-making objectiveswere active

in cultural promotion, education, health, and natural disaster relief as early

as the medieval era. They proliferated during British rule, working to

improve social welfare and literacy and pursuing relief projects.4 During

the second half of the 19th century, nationalist consciousness spread across

India and self-help emerged as the primary focus of sociopolitical

movements. Numerous organizations were established during this period,

including the Friend-in-Need Society (1858), Prathana Samaj (1864), Satya

Shodhan Samaj (1873), Arya Samaj (1875), the National Council for

Women in India (1875), and the Indian National Conference (1887). The

Societies Registration Act (SRA) was approved in 1860 to confirm the

legal status of the growing body of nongovernment Organizations (NGOs).

The SR A continues to be relevant legislation for NGOs in India, although

most state governments have enacted amendments to the original version.

Christian missionaries active in India at this time directed their efforts

toward reducing poverty and constructing hospitals, schools, roads, and

other infrastructure. Meanwhile, NGOs focused their efforts on education,

health, relief, and social welfare. A firm foundation for secular voluntary

action in India was not laid until the governmental development agencies

were established around this time, such as the Peoples Action for

Development of India. Foreign-trained Indians entered civil society in

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greater numbers, leading to a professionalization of the sector. India

witnessed a rapid increase in and diversification of the NGO sector as a

response to the national political scenario and increasing concern about

poverty and marginalization. Both welfare and empowerment oriented

organizations emerged during this period, and development, civil liberties,

education, environment, health, and livelihood all became the focus of

attention. With community participation as a defined component in a

number of social sector projects during the 1970s and 1980s, NGOs began

to be formally recognized as development partners of the state. Their work

was increasingly characterized by grassroots interventions, advocacy at

various levels, and mobilization of the marginalized to protect their rights.

The process of structural adjustment begun in the early 1990sand the

more recent approach of bilateral and international donors channeling

funds directly through the government, NGO networks, and large corporate

NGOshave somewhat pushed peoples organizations into the

background. Small, spontaneous initiatives at the community level, as a

response to social and economic exploitations at the community level, are

no longer the hallmark of the NGO sector.

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DESH SEVA SAMITI

INTRODUCTION:

Desh Seva Samiti is a strictly non-profit organization, deeply committed to

social work. It was registered in February 2005. It was the outcome of

discussions held among a group of citizens who were concerned about the

increasing impoverishment of the people. There are still people in a

metropolis like Mumbai, which is regarded as the commercial capital of

India, who are condemned to darkness because they cannot afford the cost

of a cataract operation. There are thousands of rag-pickers who compete for

a morsel of food with dogs and cats at roadside garbage bins in our cities.

On the one hand we find the sensex zooming skywards raking in millions

of rupees profits to players in the stock market, while on the other and there

are lakhs of children who go to bed hungry daily across the country.

Millions of Indians go blind every year because of nutritional deficiencies.

About 75,000 people die in road accidents and double that number are

injured. Female foeticide and sex determination tests are rampant. The

number of people below the poverty line is increasing in absolute terms

every year.

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Education for Kids:

Desh Seva Samiti has arranged for educational support for school going

children (5th 8th grade) for Bhagat Singh Nagar. The program called as

'School of Life' is conducted by Ujjwal Banerjee of Anupam Kher

Foundation wherein experiential teaching of maths and science concepts is

adapted. The program also includes English especially spoken language

and life skills. Each session is for 2h and there are 4 sessions a week held

in "Aapla Ghar" DSSs center in Bhagat Singh Nagar and the program has

been running since July 2009.

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RICH EDUCATION ACTION PROGRAMME (REAP) :

This program is an initiative of Desh Seva Samiti (DSS) to enroll school

drop-outs into National Institute of Open School (NIOS, Delhi Board). The

idea is to tutor the adolescents so that they clear Class X and will be

eligible for jobs like security guards etc. In August 2009, 5 children from

the Bhagat Singh Nagar community, Goregaon (West), have enrolled for

the NIOS secondary exams to be held in 2010.

This initiative was preceded by a community meeting wherein the

importance of education and necessity to be employed was highlighted.

This session (held June 4, 2009) was an ice-breaking session.

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Mahila Takrar Nivaran Kendra (M.T.N.K) :

While working with various communities, Desh Seva Samiti (DSS)

volunteers observed that innumerable women residing in slums were

oppressed, both, socially and economically and hence, needed an outlet to

voice their grievances. . The women were apprehensive of lodging a

complaint at the police station, either out of fear of society or due to fear of

their spouses and family members. With this backdrop, DSS along with the

police conceived the idea of the Mahila Takrar Nivaran Kendra in order

to help women in distress. Six M.T.N.K. Centres in Mumbai suburbs are

functioning since Sep 08 Kashimira, June 09 in Goregaon, Malad and

Bangur Nagar and Aug 09 in Kanakia Police Stations November 09 in

Chembur. Lately, DSS has realized that M.T.N.K caters to not just

housewives, domestic workers or small vendors but also to professional

class that seeks help.

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Objectives of M.T.N.K :

1. To give the women a listening ear and to take cognizance of the

offences perpetrated on them.

2. To work with individuals, families, groups and communities so as to

create harmonious relationships.

3. To coordinate with the police in cases of crimes against women.

4. To conduct training programmes/workshops for women as well as

their family members on wide range of issues and themes.

5. To network with womens organizations and other like-minded

organizations for collaborative work.

6. To conduct health camps.

7. To motivate distressed women to be independent and to take decisions

on their own.

Nature of Grievances :

1. Marital conflicts (wife beating, extra-marital relationships, alcoholism,

unemployment, financial constraints)

2. Problems and Disputes concerning in-laws

3. Sexual problems and lustful behaviour

4. Love affairs resulting in elopement and marriage

5. Divorce, desertion, maintenance and illegal second marriages

6. Problems between mother and son

7. Problems between father-in-law and daughter-in-law.

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SAATHI PROJECT :

Project Saathi employs women from the slums (primarily Goregaon West

community). This is an income generation activity for the women. The

project, which started in the August 2009, entails obtaining vegetables each

day directly from the farmers, cleaning, cutting, weighing and packing

them in polythene bags; these packets are sold near Goregaon Railway

Station, housing societies and canteens. These vegetables are clean and

fresh and the women carrying out the chores are provided with gloves,

aprons and caps.

Under Saathi, women are taught tailoring and embroidery and thus are

capable of taking orders from Corporates for ethnic gifts (ex: handbags,

photo frames etc.).

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Self Help Group/Microfinance:

Mansi Lavate from Mahila Artik Vikas Mahamandal (MAVIM) was on site

in July 2009 to introduce Batchat Ghat, a concept of self help financing

group in the Bhagat Singh Nagar (Goregaon, West) community. Since

then, six women self help groups with 12 to 19 women are registered with

State Bank of India with the support of MAVIM. This effort was a result of

a lot information provided by DSS on benefits of saving and convincing

each individual of Bhagat Singh Nagar community. Each group has a

President, Secretary and Treasurer from their own group.

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Environment

Mangroves Protection:

In a victory for Malad residents, the Bombay high court on Wednesday

stayed for a week an order of the collector allowing dumping of debris on a

mangrove plot along the Malad-Goregaon Link Road.

HEALTH CLINIC IN SLUM :

Desh Seva Samiti felt the need for starting a Health Clinic at Bhagat Singh

Nagar, Goregaon West, as it realized that most people living there could

not afford a visit to the doctor and thus neglected critical health issues. This

clinic is run by Dr Suvarna since August 2009, on Saturdays between 3 to 5

pm. Dr Suvarna not only treats patients but also gives advise on various

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health issues and the precautions that need to be taken to prevent certain

ailments. This clinic is for the benefit of slum dwellers especially women

who suffer from gynecological problems and also children who suffer from

common illnesses like diarrhea, cough ,cold, fever and anaemic conditions.

Medicines are distributed free of cost. Rs 10/- per patient is charged so that

they appreciate the value of the medicines and will complete the course of

medicines as prescribed by the doctor.

Medical Camps:

DSS organizes Medical Camps on regular basis. Earlier we used to arrange

them in various localities, schools etc. After getting our own premises in

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Bhagat Singh Nagar Aapla Ghar, we have a camp every month with

different speciality doctors coming in with medicines for free distribution.

Since the first camp, DSS has served at least 7,000 patients.

Events

Adolescent Group Picnic :

A picnic to Aksa Beach was arranged by DSS on June 19, 2009, so that the

girls from the Bhagat Singh Nagar (Goregaon, West) community get a

chance to interact with each other and the community workers as well.

Though the girls were eager to go out they did not even want to inform

their parents about the picnic as their parents were reluctant to send the

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girls out. It was a difficult job to convince the parents to send the girls for

the picnic.

Members from an organization called Project Mainstream were invited to

give information on various courses which would benefit the girls. In all,

25 young women from the community attended the picnic. Lunch and

snacks were served. All the girls enjoyed themselves and before leaving

gave us a feed back of the event.

2 DAY WORKSHOP AT BHAGAT SINGH NAGAR:

A 2 day workshop was organized by Desh Seva Samiti along with Kamgar

Shikshan Kendra (workers education) for women between the age group

of 20 to 40 yrs at Bethani Church, Bhagat Singh Nagar on 20th and 21st

August 2009 from 11am to 4pm.

A total of 40 women participated in this workshop which required

compulsory attendance of both days.

Day 1 had programs that included a talk by Ms Maya Bise on Myths and

Beliefs wherein she pointed out the phony tricks of tantriks which lead to

fraud or crime. Ms. Bise also cautioned that superstition and blind beliefs

to follow tantriks words most often result in loss of money. This was

followed by a talk by Dr. Suvarna who gave details on medical problems

faced by women after the age of 35. She also gave information on breast

cancer and cervical cancer and encouraged the women to freely discuss

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their medical concerns with the doctor. She also explained the problems

faced by women during menopause and how to cope with them.

Day 2 had programs including a demonstration on making artificial

jewellery with pearls by Ms. Shraddha, a volunteer with DSS. In the

evening Ms. Seema Gudekar who is working with Desh Seva Samiti and

who looks after the various activities in Bhagat Singh Nagar Slum gave

information on various activities conducted for the community. Dr .Avisha

Kulkarni, Director of DSS provided information on various activities of

Desh Seva Samiti and encouraged the participants to fully make use of the

same.

After the end of the 2 day workshop a stipend of Rs 150/- was given to

each participant along with a certificate from Kamgar Shikshan Kendra

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Conclusion

Working with Desh Seva Samiti was an excellent experience in my life. I

have learned many things by working with them. I have interacted with

many children and their i realize what actual problem they are facing

through. I have also help them in their studies and extra-curricular activities

and try to motivate them, how to do well in their exam. I have also

experience that parents of poor students were also not caring about their

children and so they were not discipline. I helped the children in many

occasion like Diwali, Children day, rangoli, diya making etc. Experiencing

that handling children is not an easy job, but the way the teacher handle is

appreciable. But at the same time there is that part of the society which is

not well to do, is facing a problem with scarcity in resources, finance and

unfortunate in receiving all those luxuries and the basic amenities of life.

The gap between have and have not is widening on a day to day basis.

Fortunately for this section of society there are few corporate who under

corporate social responsibility.

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Recommendations

1. They should spread their area network as it would help them to reach

the poor people solve their problem.

2. Currently they are doing their best as far as activities are concerned

however they can do better in the future.

3. They should bring more and more sponsorship.

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Bibliography

www.Deshsevasamiti.com

www.google.com