Corporate Social Responsibility at Biocon
“All the wealth in the world cannot help one little Indian village if the people are not taught to help themselves” |
| - Swami Vivekananda |
Biocon’s Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, started in 2004, are based on the principle of making enduring impact through programs that promote social and economic inclusion.
At Biocon, CSR has been an integral part of our business since inception. The Company is committed to innovation, affordability and access to healthcare. In line with this commitment and as a socially responsible organization, Biocon has, over the last 10 years, invested significantly in various CSR programs aimed at making a difference to the lives of marginalized communities.
Our CSR Vision
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To promote social and economic inclusion by ensuring that marginalized communities have equal access to healthcare services, educational opportunities, and proper civic infrastructure.
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To bridge the gap of gender disparity in education, healthcare and employment.
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To create a globally competitive Biotech ecosystem in India through skill development.
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To promote the study of science which is so important for the progress of the country.
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To create a platform for promoting the rich Art & Culture of the country and sensitizing the communities to appreciate fine arts.
Our Philosophy
As a socially responsible corporate, Biocon acknowledges its responsibility towards the environment, its consumers, employees, and other stakeholders.
Biocon aims to fund pilot projects in the areas of healthcare and education to demonstrate their viability before being scaled up by the government at the state level. Biocon believes that in order to make meaningful impact, we need to partner with the government and like- minded organizations. Accordingly, we are engaged in several public-private partnership (PPP) projects aimed at effectively and transparently implementing welfare schemes for marginalized communities.
Our CSR Approach
At Biocon, we believe in the power of low cost, simple technologies to strengthen the delivery of and expand the footprint of our health and education programs. Such a sustained effort will ensure that all services are inclusive, transparent and thus sustainable. We support and implement innovative technologies that we believe will facilitate this goal.
Our CSR Programs
Biocon's CSR activities are/will be implemented through:
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Biocon Foundation – develops and implements healthcare; gender equality & safety of vulnerable sections of society; educational and infrastructure projects for marginalized sections of society; and also promotes the rich art & culture of India, to encourage artists, and sensitize communities.
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Biocon Academy – aims to address the skill deficit in the Biotechnology sector, by developing high-end talent through advanced learning and industrial training to make them employable
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External Partners – with track records in the CSR area.
CSR Focus Areas
- Health care
- Education
- Art and Culture
- Safety of Women and Children
- Gender Equality
- Support for the differently-abled
- Rural Development
Biocon Foundation
Biocon Foundation’s initiatives are primarily focused on healthcare, primary education and civic infrastructure. All projects are developed and implemented by Biocon Foundation based on need assessment through discussions with local communities, and government departments. Project appraisals are done periodically by combining community feedback with evaluation metrics developed by the Foundation. These metrics include patient footfall, health indicators, feedback from teachers, community satisfaction etc.
In addition we support programs that promote art and culture, and programs that work towards equality and safety of women, children and the differently-abled.
Health Care
The Foundation has developed an integrated and holistic healthcare delivery service, which seeks to address critical gaps in the delivery of healthcare in rural India. Our efforts are targeted at enabling last mile reach of preventive and primary health services in rural areas.
Our healthcare programs are delivered at three levels:
- Preventive Healthcare - through education to prevent onset of infectious diseases; early detection of chronic diseases through regular community based screening; and facilitating timely help and treatment to improve maternal and child health.
- Primary Healthcare - through the eLAJ Smart Clinics, and through health camps, which provide a single point see-and-treat model of care aimed at reducing out-of-pocket expenses and time spent away from work.
- Tertiary Care - through the Arogya Raksha Yojana Health Micro Insurance Scheme, which provides cashless cover for catastrophic illness and surgeries through a network of approved hospitals.
The Foundation believes that the use of technology can make healthcare delivery in rural areas more efficient. It has used innovative technologies to enable several initiatives in the sphere of preventive healthcare and is also engaging with state governments to implement a novel e-Health program to deliver Universal Health Care through government Primary Health Care Centers. Biocon intends to replicate this PPP model in other parts of India to make a meaningful impact in healthcare delivery.
Education and Training
Biocon Foundation believes in fulfilling the ‘right to education’ by delivering quality education in innovative ways. Education projects were developed to address the gaps in critical learning areas that were identified in consultation with community leaders and school teachers. The Foundation aims to empower and include underserved young people in rural areas by providing them access to experiential learning in basic math, computer skills and language skills.
Biocon Foundation also aims to develop the pure sciences and experiential scientific learning by supporting organizations that are engaged in path breaking projects.
Advanced Training through Biocon Academy
The Academy aims to impart advanced training to young graduates in order to provide them with the necessary skills required for gainful employment in the Biopharma Sector. Through this initiative the company will train up to 100 graduates in the first year (2014), and will help them to find placement at biotech enterprises. Biocon will provide 75% of the total program fee as scholarship to all selected candidates.
Promote Art & Culture
India has a rich heritage of Art and Culture across the land which needs to be preserved and promoted. Our various forms of music and dance, style of paintings and sculptures have intrigued many across the globe, yet a large pool of our artistes have not gained enough recognition. Biocon Foundation believes in creating a platform to promote art & culture, encourage artists, and share this knowledge with the marginalized communities through various initiatives to help them develop a keen sense of appreciating fine arts.
Safety of Women and Children
Biocon believes that the safety of women and children is the collective responsibility of society. We provide safe transport for pregnant women to come to primary health centres for ante natal check-ups, and for children attending our Aata Paata Wadi. We also provide vehicles for the police to support their work in managing the safety of citizens.
Gender Equality
Gender equality is a basic human right, and at Biocon we work towards this in all our communities. We work towards gender equality by providing vocational skills and assisting with employment opportunities. We counsel, mentor, and protect young women at risk from sexual trafficking, we assist women and girls with life skills coaching, and employment opportunities.
Support for the Differently Abled
Equal opportunities for differently abled is critical to all round inclusive development. Biocon Foundation is committed to supporting organizations that provide skill development and other opportunities to differently abled youth to make them independent contributors to society.
Rural Development
India is facing a big challenge in the area of infrastructure development, especially in rural areas. As a socially responsible organization, we are working with the government to build townships, schools, sanitation and water supply that can fulfil the basic needs of rural communities.
Biocon Foundation has:
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Adopted and rebuilt a township in North Karnataka – 400 plus houses and the support infrastructure including a school, safe drinking water, health centre, and community hall have been built so far.
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Provided access to sustainable and clean sanitation facilities to rural communities – 1000 household toilets and several community toilets have been built so far.
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Provided clean drinking water and set up rain water harvesting system in villages to provide a sustainable solution for water scarcity.
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Provided solar lights for houses in remote areas to reduce dependency on unreliable power grid.
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Is reviving lakes and other water bodies in Karnataka
Governance
CSR Committee:
The CSR Committee is responsible for oversight of all CSR activities from start to finish. It shall meet at least twice a year to ensure Biocon delivers on its CSR goals.
Identification of programs for CSR:
Programs to be supported via CSR will be selected by the CSR committee through a transparent process and the selected programs will meet the regulatory requirements.
Budgeting and spend:
For each financial year, the minimum amount available for CSR spending will be defined in accordance with the applicable provisions of the statute. Any surplus arising out of CSR projects shall not form part of business profit of the company.
As per the statute, any unspent budget shall be reported in the Annual Report.
Reporting:
CSR initiatives of the Company will be reported in the Annual Report
To know more about Biocon's CSR, please contact
Pratima Rao
eMail: pratima.rao@biocon.com
Seema Ahuja
eMail: seema.ahuja@biocon.com
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