Social responsibility is coded into the DNA of public sector enterprises (PSEs). However, more often than not, the social objectives become a constraint on PSEs, putting them at a disadvantage vis-a-vis private players. The point is, should the responsibility of sustainable development be shouldered solely by the PSEs?
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is a vital component of sustainable development (SD). The two have become integral to business. Rights and responsibilities go hand in hand for all businesses, and are ownership-neutral.
The challenge in the Indian context lies in furthering CSR as a major tool, stripping it of its vagueness and establishing its strong network with sustainable development. Once clarity is achieved, it should be encased in legality to be enforceable, so that the entire corporate body follows a single code of conduct to move in the same direction.
What exactly are the hindrances? For starters, the association of competitive advantage with sustainability needs to be exhaustively researched, debated and advertised/popularised as an infallible business method. Secondly, it should be acknowledged, through studies, that the voluntary aspects of SD are inadequate to address the global contingencies since they lack a proper structure.
Many reform-oriented, resilient, adaptable and sturdy public enterprises are based on the sustainable development theme. The department of public enterprises gives ?sustainable development? a weightage of 5% in its annual assessment-of-CPSEs. The annual evaluation reveals that the CPSEs are i proving their score on meeting annual targets.
Also remarkable is the symmetry PSEs have attained between people, planet and profits, as there is a rise in the number of PSEs that have continuously posted profits while pursuing the triple bottom line approach.
Examples abound of PSEs that have meshed sustainability into their core business.
Bharat Petroleum has been involved in various health, education and environment conservation related activities. A community development programme of BPCL in village Ramthenga, of the Jajpur district of Orissa, has made explicit the company?s social commitments. Its focus has been on education, health with respect to hazards, sanitation and safeguards of working in mines.
Strong integration between all groups is central to the theme of sustainable development. Rural India deserves special attention here Since India lives in its villages. Some 62 crore rural people, specially women, are waiting for Corporate India to come and do their bit in key areas like health, education, sanitation, drinking water and overall living standard. If given proper attention, rural India can become the biggest catch for sustainable development. PSEs have to once again play the role model here.
The writer is director general, Scope, a representative body of PSEs