Corporate Social Responsibility is strongly connected with the principles of Sustainability; an organization should make decisions based not only on financial factors, but also on the social and environmental consequences. Therefore, it is the core corporate responsibility of Jindal SAW Ltd. to practice its corporate values through its commitment to grow in a socially and environmentally responsible way, while meeting the interests of its stakeholders.
Jindal SAW Ltd. recognizes that its business activities have wide impact on the societies in which it operates, and therefore an effective practice is required giving due consideration to the interests of its stakeholders including shareholders, customers, employees, suppliers, business partners, local communities and other organizations. The company endeavours to make CSR a key business process for sustainable development. Jindal SAW Ltd. is responsible to continuously enhance shareholders wealth; it is also committed to its other stakeholders to conduct its business in an accountable manner that creates a sustained positive impact on society. Our company is committed towards aligning with nature; and has adopted eco-friendly practices.
As a corporate entity, the company is committed towards sustainability. Ongoing dialogues with shareholders provide valuable approach with an objective that each business decision takes into account it's social and environmental impacts and plans.
Corporate Social Responsibility is evolving fast in the dynamic socio-economic scenario presently prevailing in the country. Jindal SAW believes in giving back to the society and creating a sustainable environment for all.
Our CSR activities are driven by the core value of Inclusion. Jindal SAW shall ensure that all developmental activities and initiatives undertaken are accessible and inclusive to the most marginalized segments such as children, women, elderly and those with disabilities. This would reflect particularly in the field of education, healthcare, water and sanitation, community welfare, skill development, employment generation, infrastructure development, preservation of national heritage & culture, tourism, mobility and transportation etc.
Svayam has been working across India towards making public infrastructure including different modes of transportation, tourism & heritage sites, education & employment accessible and inclusive to all. The core guiding principles have been:
a) to lay a foundation for an accessible and inclusive society that provides dignity to people with reduced mobility and
b) to ensure an equitable access to public resources, services and infrastructure particularly, built environment, mobility, transportation, Information and communication technologies.
Jindal SAW Ltd. undertakes several developmental programmes through ‘Svayam’, a think-tank set up under the ‘Sminu Jindal Charitable Trust’ to implement our CSR initiatives. Svayam’s deep commitment towards shaping an inclusive society has shown profound impacts and has resulted in independence and restoration of dignity for people with reduced mobility. Svayam believes that when everyone is born as equal, they should enjoy and use the services and infrastructure as equals.
Svayam follows a two-pronged approach towards bridging the social gap i.e. it raises awareness about the everyday challenges faced by people with reduced mobility and also carries out policy advocacy to educate policymakers towards executing accessibility solutions.
We also work for development of vulnerable and marginalised communities near the vicinity of our manufacturing facilities.
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Promotion of Accessible Transportation: Life on wheels can keep the wheel of life running!
An accessible building is not very useful if people fail to reach there. Therefore, we advocate and promote independent mobility and accessible transportation systems to make society inclusive.
- To promote accessible transportation, Svayam donated several wheelchair accessible vehicles to individuals and NGOs, as well as a hospital.
- We had partnered with the Access Exchange International (AEI), USA, in developing of the World Bank’s Transit Access Training Tool Kit on safe bus driving.
- Contributed to drafting Civil Aviation requirements for carriage by air of persons with disabilities.
- Conducted series of sensitization sessions for IGI Airport Community on in partnership with DIAL to better address the special needs of passengers with reduced mobility.
- Conducted Access Audit of 10 Metro Stations for making them accessible.
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Accessible Heritage Sites: India’s first accessible monument!
- In 2008, Svayam along with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) gave India its first accessible monument by making the World Heritage Site (WHS) Qutub Minar accessible for visitors with reduced mobility. The model was later replicated to make other WHS accessible including the Red Fort, Taj Mahal and Fatehpur Sikri Group of Monuments.
- The visitor footfall at Qutub Minar dramatically changed after the site was made accessible. According to media reports, in the year 2009, the revenue earned through ticket sales at the QutubMinar stood at Rs 10.41 crore, much higher than that collected for the Red Fort (Rs 5.5 crore) and Humayun’s Tomb (Rs 4.8 crore).
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Accessible Rural Sanitation: If sanitation is accessible, family is safer
To help make rural India achieve accessible sanitation, Svayam in 2018 launched a three-year ‘Accessible Rural Sanitation’ project which aims to help build 1500 accessible family toilets (AFTs) in 5 States i.e. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha. We have chosen water.org as our implementing partner for this project while Svayam is a funding and knowledge partner.
The objective of the project is to encourage people in Rural India to build accessible family toilets with the loan from Financial Institutions (FIs). FIs have already started disbursing loan through the Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and members of these groups are showing keen interest towards this family Toilet concept that meets the needs of all ages and abilities within the family and often has an aspiration value as well. (More details on https://svayam.wordpress.com/2018/09/20/svayam-faas-water-org-join-hands-to-promote-accessible-sanitation-in-rural-india/)
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Accessible & inclusive elections: Leave no voter behind!
Svayam had partnered with the Election Commission of India (ECI) to make the General Election 2019 inclusive. On the request of Svayam, several Delhi based NGOs (recipients of adapted wheelchair accessible vans, donated by Svayam) offered their accessible vans in Delhi to ensure that voters with reduced mobility reach their polling booths with ease, safety and dignity. The collaboration was aimed to help the ECI realise our shared goal of ‘leave no voter behind’. As ‘Inclusion of voters with disabilities’ has been given a special focus in the ECI’s Strategic Plan 2016-2025, Svayam is putting its all efforts to help the ECI realise that greater objective.
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Education: When all children grow together, nation grows!
Svayam has been promoting inclusive education and has always been saying that children with disabilities should study in the same school where other children study; this helps students to understand and specific needs of children with disabilities and they grow together when they join workforce.
To sensitise teacher’s on disabilities and to help make educational institutions accessible, Svayam had started raising the awareness about accessibility and inclusive education through workshops in different University (DU). Svayam conducted as access audit of SRCC (a college of DU) and donated a lift to the college to make it accessible in addition to advising them on the need and specifications of accessible toilet.
Subsequently we also worked with Ashoka University (Sonepat, Haryana) helping them with by doing an access audit of the campus in the initial phase and a review audit after the first phase was completed. We also conducted access audit of OP Jindal Global University to help them achieve accessibility for all.
At the request of IIT Delhi, Svayam team conducted access survey of their new Sonepat Campus “IIT Techno Park” to assess its accessibility and has suggested measures to make the campus barrier-free for people with disabilities. The recommendations of Svayam will help the IIT address the existing issues and make the institute more accessible for students with disabilities and help in achieving the dream of inclusive education.
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Guidelines:
Svayam has contributed to the preparation of several policies and guidelines on accessibility as well as for inclusion of persons with disabilities. Few of them are Harmonised Guidelines & Space Standards for Barrier Free Built Environment for Persons with Disability and Elderly Persons, the National Building Code 2016, and the Civil Aviation Requirements for Carriage of Persons with Disabilities by Air, among others. Svayam also actively worked with DGCA along with other NGOs and contributed to the major revisions in the Civil Aviation Requirements in 2008.
Svayam has authored and in partnership with the Office of the Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, GOI, published the “Guidelines for Making Religious Places Accessible” to help make all religious places accessible for all including elderly and those with disabilities.
Svayam is working on more such sectoral guidelines to help make various sectors accessible such as colleges, hotels, etc. -
Svayam Accessibility Awards:
Svayam Accessibility Awards (instituted in 2010) are conferred on the organizations and individuals who have shown consistent commitment towards providing accessible infrastructure for all. These awards play a pivotal role in providing the right impetus to the development of inclusive infrastructure and related policies and practices ensuring that accessibility initiatives are sustainable and meaningful.
So far, three editions have been held – 2012 (India), 2015 (Portugal), 2018 (Taiwan). The awards are given on the side-lines of TRANSED Series of Conferences, which take place every three year in different parts o f the world.
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Accessible India Campaign:
Svayam was a major contributor to the Hon’ble PM’s Accessible India Campaign. It carried out access audit of 340 public buildings in eight cities under the Campaign which are being implemented by the respective agencies.
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Accessible ICT & Entertainment:
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had issued a Consultation Paper on ‘Making ICT Accessible for Persons with Disabilities’ dated 20 December 2017. Stakeholders were requested to send their comments by 22 January 2018, and counter comments by 05 February 2018. Svayam, as a leading accessibility rights organization, was on the forefront in submitting its comments and recommendations, as well as counter comments.
Later, TRAI held an open house discussion on 05th April 2018, where Svayam team participated and strengthened its case for accessible information and communication technologies (ICT), and why its recommendations should be considered for framing a policy for Inclusive ICT for all.
Most of the suggestions made by Svayam have found place in the Full Recommendations released by TRAI on 09 July 2018. TRAI has submitted its Recommendations to the Government of India for framing a National Policy. If it comes into force, our ICT such as mobile phones, STBs, apps, websites, electronic equipment will be accessible to persons with different disabilities and ease their lives. -
Committee Memberships:
Svayam is a member of the Standing Committee on Accessible Transport & Mobility (ABE60) of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) of National Academies, USA. Svayam regularly participates at the International Transport Forum (ITF), which acts as a think tank for transport policy and organises the Annual Summit of transport ministers from different countries.
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Awards to Svayam:
Svayam has won several awards in India and abroad including the National Tourism Awards of Excellence, jointly with the ASI for three major WHS i.e. Qutub Minar, Red Fort & Fatehpur Sikri being the most accessible monuments and also the GAATES Award of Recognition 2015, among others.
- Environment Conservation (Plantation Drives)
- Health for All (Blood Donation Camps)
- GauSeva (Different Name, Free Chara)
