Social Responsibility
Social Responsibility
Social Responsibility
Structure
9.1 Corporate Governance: Concept
9.2 Committee Recommendations on Corporate Governance
9.3 Coporate Governance in Public Enterprises
9.4 Social Responsibility Strategies
9.5 Social Audit- Introduction
9.6 What is Social Audit
9.7 Social Audit in India
9.8 Benefits of Social Audit
9.9 Summary
9.10 Self Assessment Questions
9.11 References
9.12 Further Readings
36
Definitions Corporate Governance
and Corporate Social
Responsibility
Adolf Berle has defined social responsibility as “the manager’s responsiveness to
public consensus” (www.bharatpetroleum.com).
Koontz and O’Donnell have given the definition of social responsibility thus: “The
personal obligation of the people as they act in their own interests to assure that the
rights and legitimate interests of others are not infringed”
(Hindu business line, 1998).
The Cadbury Committee, under the chairmanship of Sir Adrian Cadbury, was set up
by the London Stock Exchange in May 1991. The committee, consisting of
representatives drawn from the top levels of British industry, was given the task of
drafting a code of practices to assist public enterprise. In defining and applying
internal controls to limit their exposure to financial loss, from whatever cause.
Birla Committee (2001)
The first formal committee was appointed by Securities and Exchange Board of India
(SEBI), under the Chairmanship of Kumara Managalam Birla (known as Birla
Committee). This was set up after the CII code on corporate governance was
framed; to study the corporate governance from listed companies’ perspective and
culminated when its recommendations were included in the listing agreement.
• Board meetings should be held at least four times in a year with a maximum time
gap of four months between any two meetings.
37
Public Enterprise: • Companies should required to give consolidated accounts in respect of all their
Accountability and subsidiaries. A company having multiple lines of business should be segmental
Governance
reporting.
• A management discussion and analysis report should form part of the annual
report to the shareholders covering industry structure, opportunities and threats,
segment wise or product wise performance, outlook, and risks.
Following the Enron fiasco and subsequent enactment of Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the
US, Government of India [Department of Company Affairs (DCA)] had set up
another committee to study corporate governance. This committee was formed under
the Chairmanship of Naresh Chandra (known as Naresh Chandra Committee/NC
Committee).
Unlike the Birla committee, this committee focused on corporate governance from
the perspective of companies in general, without bifurcating as listed or unlisted.
After this study, SEBI appointed a second committee under the chairmanship of N.R
Narayana Murthy to analyze the compliances of clause 49. Narayana Murthy
committee focused mainly on the role of the audit committee and the board
composition, particularly independent directors. The objective of this committee was
to examine and recommend amendments to the law in order to maintain high
standards of corporate governance and also to ensure that corporate governance is
looked beyond mere procedures and is implemented by companies to is protect the
interests of shareholders.
A close look at the amendments proposed in the Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2003
reveals that the changes proposed are based upon the recommendations of Naresh
Chandra Committee and Narayana Murthy Committee.
Hopefully, these recommendations when accepted in true spirit, should raise the
standards of corporate governance in Indian firms and make them attractive for
domestic and global capital and should form as base for further evolution of structure
of corporate governance. 39
Public Enterprise:
Accountability and 9.3 CORPORATE GOVERNANCE IN PUBLIC
Governance
ENTERPRISES
Public sector enterprises are ‘generally autonomous bodies’ which are owned and
managed by the government and which provide goods or services for a price. The
ownership of the government extends to 51 percent, or more, in order to make it a
public enterprise/entity. Public enterprises are considered as important instruments for
self-reliant economic growth. They also help speed up economic growth, provide the
required infrastructure, act as tools to achieve various social objectives like better
distribution of income, expansion of employees’ employment opportunities, removal of
regional imbalances, reducing concentration etc. From a paltry Rs. 29 crore in 1951-
52, with 29 PEs the investment in the central public sector went up to well over
Rs. 6,00,000 crores by 2000 with 240 PEs.
Public enterprises have been organized in many ways as distinct autonomous units,
with varying degrees of legal and operational independence. Where an autonomous
legal entity is established by an Act of Parliament or legislature, it is called ‘public
corporation’ or ‘statutory corporation’. These are the principally chosen as
instruments for the management of nationalized industries. The other popular method
followed is forming government companies under the provisions of the Companies
Act, 1956 (Sec. 617), in which not less than 51 percent of the paid-up share capital
he held by the central or the state governments, or jointly by the central and state
governments. A subsidiary of a government company is also a government
company.
The Board of Directors is the top management organ, and is responsible for
implementing the objectives of an enterprise. The board members are nominated by
the shareholders, i.e., government. Under the normal pattern, it includes the
Chairman-cum-Managing Director, one or more full-time functional directors,
officials representing and administrative ministry of finance, and sometimes one or
two other relate ministries, and lastly, one or two non-officials, selected for their
expertise and business experience. Under the trusteeship and entrepreneurial
functions concept, the board looks after its various categories of functions –
establishment of basic policies including corporate strategies, decisions on major
financial matters, selection of key personnel, receiving working reports and, reviewing
and passing judgment upon them.
The functioning of PE boards has been subjected to criticism on various grounds. The
various practices followed, it is complained, do not facilitate the emergence of an
autonomous enterprise management with initiative and operating effectiveness, and
yet be responsible and responsive to the government guidelines and policies. The 40th
Report of the Committee on Public Undertaking (73-74) regretted that the
performance of public undertakings continues to be judged by a variety of vague
objects and considerations. It recommended government presenting a white paper
which can set out the framework of governments general, economic, financial and
social strategy for public sector undertakings, micro-objects – both financial and
economic – of each public undertaking and their review, and also qualification of their
social objectives and obligations and the issue of government directives in appropriate
cases. The nomination of government officials, according to experience, has also to
be termed as superfluous and non-functional. The enterprises are also facing
problems as the government is not strictly adhering to the policy that all heads of
public enterprises will have a five-year tenure. This was accepted to improve the
efficiency of top management.
40
Obligation to the Public Sector Enterprise Corporate Governance
and Corporate Social
Responsibility
a) The role of the executives is to assist the PSE to achieve its objectives as spelt
out in the charter constituting the setting up of the enterprise.
c) In relation to the general public, the employees in the PSE and administrative
ministries should conduct themselves in such a manner that the public feels that
the decisions taken or the recommendations made by them are objective and
transparent and are not calculated to promote improper gains for the political
party in power or for themselves or for any third party. This would be particularly
significant so far as the customers of the public service are concerned. This will
apply also mutatis mutandis to the employee in the administrative ministry
concerned with the PSE.
e) Where an employee of the PSE has reasonable ground to believe that he or she
is being required by the superior authority to act in a manner which is illegal or
against the prescribed rules and regulations or if any legal infringement comes to
his or her notice, he or she should decline to implement the instruction, and would
also have a right to bring the facts to the notice of the Chairman / Managing
Director of the enterprise or the Secretary of the Administrative Ministry / the
Cabinet Secretary to examine the issue carefully to concerned employees in the
administrative ministry.
Public Accountability
“In reality far more complex problems arise especially because the layered and
hierarchical principal-agent structure that characterizes the public sector ownership.
The ultimate owners of the public sector entities viz., the voters express their
interests / objectives in a diffuse, indirect and cultured up manner. However, when
the governments/ politicians act on behalf of the owners or the voters to crystallize
owners/voters’ interests in terms of specific objectives, they are prone to could these
objectives to the extent that their self interests influence interpretation of voters
objectives. Since governments / politicians act as principals through civil service,
another layer is added to the principal-agent chain. Civil servants too are liable to act
as agents by allowing their own objectives to dominate their own actions during
administration of public entities.
One may argue that already we have eminent bodies like the Public Enterprise
Selection Board (PESB). The PESB recommends personnel for the posts of
Chairman, Managing Director, Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) and
Functional Directors in PEs as well as posts at any other level. PESB is also
expected to advise the government on such matters as (A) the desired structure of
the boards, (b) performance appraisal system for both PEs and their managerial
personnel, (c) build data bank on the performance of the PEs and their key personnel,
(d) formulation and enforcement of code of conduct for PEs managerial personnel
and (e) suitable training and development programmes for management personnel in
PEs. Despite all these lofty goals placed before the PSEB, the matters have not
improved much in regard to the PEs. Complaints about their performance in all the
matters vested with the PESB continue to be voiced, sometimes loudly even in highly
respectable and responsible quarters. Instances of PEs remaining headless for long
periods of their boards not being constituted with adequate number of functional and
independent directors continue to be frequent and numerous. Quite often the
appointment process gets bogged down because of complaints with regard to integrity
of the candidates being considered for the PEs boards. There are also instances of
spurious complaints lodged by competing candidates, thereby necessitating vigilance
inquiries. In many instances it is a hurdle race especially for competent and clean
candidates, who often prefer to remain out of the race if they attack higher value to
enjoying peace of mind.
43
Public Enterprise:
Accountability and 9.3 SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY OF BUSINESS
Governance
The growth of large corporations with their professional managers has changed the
nature of society through its effect on competitive forces and the ownership of
private property. With their increases power in society, they are forced to concern
themselves with the nature of social responsibilities. Management must take decisions
involving moral issues and must adapt itself to the social forces that affect it. The
idea of social responsibility of business is based upon the concept that business is
something more than a purely economic institution.
Public Enterprises operates within the precincts of the society. While its immediate
society, where it operates, provides its environment, material, manpower, market etc.
the whole global society provides for its global corporate citizenship and ensures its
facilities in terms of environment, market, perspectives, exposure to technology and
integration with priorities in the business scenario. The social responsibility of Public
Enterprises consists of its responsibility to its consumers and customers, its prospects,
its immediate society (community), its human resources (people), its society at large,
ecological environment, the Government, and its business environment. Social
responsibility of business is not new to our country. In the olden days, whenever there
was a famine, the leading businessmen of the area would literally throw open their
godowns and their treasure chests to provide food and other assistance to the needy.
The history of every region of this country is replete with stories of the magnificent
manner in which businessmen rose to the occasion in times of calamity. Even in
ordinary times, it was the businessmen who looked after the welfare of the destitute,
the goshalas, wells and ponds wherever what was difficult to get, the pathashalas and
so on. So to accept social responsibility is no more than rededicating ourselves to the
cherished values in the field of business. Gandhiji reminded of these values when he
propounded the theory of trusteeship. India is a democratic welfare state. She wants
to achieve welfare through democratic means. Business organization, which fit in
with such a specification, would have a better scope to survive and grow here. In
order to make them suitable for such a business environment, they should foster a
corporate objective of maximizing social benefit. This must be considered as the
social responsibility of business. It pertinently means that every business enterprise
has a responsibility to take care of the society’s interest.
Degree of
Social
Responsibility
Social Social So
Contribution Response Oblig
1. Initially founded by far-sighted people who visibly set the firms moral tone.
2. Stuck to the basics and produced only high quality goods and services for specific
market niches.
3. Developed a public image that emphasized that commitment to quality and often used
non-traditional means to promote it.
6. Encouraged all employees to become part of the shared mission through full worker
participation in decisions.
7. Paid fairly and usually offered benefit packages exceeding the competition.
9. Constantly solicited feedback from customers on all subjects from product direction
to corporate donations.
10. Top managers possessed an extensive knowledge of current events and took a
wide-ranging interest in affairs outside their business.
13. Deal with like minded businesses and encourage their employers to do the same.
14. Constantly look to the future but always pay attention to the past.
1. In addition to making a fair and adequate return on capital, business must be just
and humane, as well as efficient and dynamic. The modern business has manifold
responsibilities (a) it self, (b) to its customers; (c) employees; (d) owners,
shareholders and partners, (e) community and (f) the state. The task of
management is to reconcile and harmonise these separate and sometimes
conflicting responsibilities.
2. The S.R. of Business can best be assumed in an atmosphere of freedom with the
least possible restraint on healthy competition. Concentration and monopoly have
to be watched and guarded, and wherever necessary, dispersed.
3. Every business has an overriding responsibility to make the fullest possible use of
its resources, both human and capital. Management has the responsibility to
provide security of employment with fair wages and equal opportunity for
personal growth and advancement within the business, which is a requirement of
justice, and means of securing efficient management.
4. It highlights the respective roles of the enterprises, the shareholders, the workers,
the customers, the management and the community. The responsibility of
management is to fulfill the fair first needs of these claimants besides, providing
consumer satisfaction.
46
5. It laid emphasis on the reciprocal duties between business and the community Corporate Governance
through laying down of practical measures like reliable means of communication, and Corporate Social
Responsibility
better education of he citizens about civil responsibilities, local meetings and social
audit.
On the basis of the above seminar report, we may put down the social responsibilities
of Business, in the Indian context in the flow chart given below
We discuss, in the paragraphs that follow, the S.R. of business towards these
different groups. The following flowchart presents business’s social responsibilities
towards different groups.
• Maintaining Ecological
Balance
47
Public Enterprise: Social Audit, which is a tool for evaluating, verifying and reporting the performance
Accountability and of the firm in the sphere of social responsibility. It will help a “socially conscious
Governance
organization” to bring about greater strategic articulation and desirable modifications
in its social policies and programs. In this unit the term social audit is defined and the
desirability of undertaking social audit by a business enterprise is discussed. The
various frameworks or methodologies for conducting social audit are explained. The
potential difficulties that could be faced by an organization adopting social audit are
discussed and critically evaluated. The status and the state of art of social audit in
relation to India is examined and analysed. Finally, what looks like the future of social
audit is explored.
48
Case Study 1 Corporate Governance
and Corporate Social
Responsibility
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY OF BUSINESS:
BHARAT PETROLUEM
Introduction
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) is a downstream oil refining
and marketing company. The company has its network spread over all the four
regions in India and is represented in almost all markets. It caters to different
petroleum sectors – Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Kerosene for
domestic consumption, automotive fuels and lubricants for vehicles, and
feedstock and fuels for industrial applications. The company also manufacture
petrochemicals like Benzene, Toluene, Linear Alkyl Benzene feedstock etc.
With a sales turnover of Rs. 25,650 crore and profits of Rs. 701.30 crore in
1999, BPCL is the 5th largest company by sales in India. Its strength lies in an
efficient refinery and strong distribution network, which has given it a 20%
market share in petroleum products in India. BPCL has a tie up with Shell
Petroleum Co. of Netherlands to manufacture and market Shell lubricants in
India. In a major expansion move, BPCL is increasing its refining capacity
through 3 joint ventures and also adding on to its distribution strength by laying
a similar number of pipelines. BPCL is also planning a foray into
petrochemicals through a 1.8 million tonnes (mt) naphtha craker plant in Tamil
Nadu for around Rs. 7,000 crore and this project is scheduled to go on stream
by 2002.
Ecological Concern
BPCL has been continuously striving towards conservation and improvement
of the environment by adopting new technologies. In March 2003, BPCL
introduced low lead MS (with 0.15 gm of lead per liter) in the country. From
April 1996, HSD with a maximum sulphur content of 0.5% by weight, was
introduced in the metro cities and in the Taj Trapezium. From September 1996,
HSD, with a maximum sulphur content of 0.25% by weight, was introduced in
the Taj Trapezium. To meet the requirement of HSD all over the country with
the revised specification of maximum sulphur content of 0.25% by weight,
from April 1999, facilities for Diesel Hydro De-sulphurisation are being put up
in the refinery. Distribution of other low sulphur fuels (which has maximum
sulphur content of 1.8% by weight) was started in the National capital region
from October 1996, which ended the use on High Sulphur FO and RFO. BPCL
conducted two advertising compaigns of behalf of the industry – the first on the
importance of LPG conservation and the second on the introduction of low
leaded petrol. On the pollution control front, BPCL has set up a special
sophisticated plant to meet the stringent standards set by Minimum National
Standards for Effluents from Oil Refineries (MINAS). BPCL’s emission
standards are far more stringent than the limits laid down by the Pollution
Control Board. BPCL had also invested around Rs. 220 crore, in pollution
abatement and energy conservation systems.
Contd....
49
Public Enterprise: Contd....
Accountability and
Governance
Safety and Social Commitments.
BPCL sponsors many sporting events like Santosh Trophy, National Football
Tournament, and also coaching camps for youngsters. Lifeline Express was
contributed to social welfare – a fully equipped train, which look the latest
medical technology to remote villages of India. The company has also adopted
11 Scheduled caste/Scheduled tribes villages under the Component and Tribal
sub-plan. The facilities provided by the company include community centers,
tube/borewells, educational support medical facilities, vocational guidance and
training to make villagers self-reliant and improve their standard of living.
Achievements
BPCL was adjudged the winner of the ‘Oil Industry Safety Awards’ for its
safety performance being the best among all the “LPG Marketing Organization
in 1995-96” for the fourth year in succession. BPCL’s annual report for 1994-
95 was selected by ICAI as the best presented amongst the public sector/joint
sector companies for the second year in succession. The South Asian
Federation of Accountants also adjudged the same as the second best
presented in the non-financial sector in the SAARC region. BPCL received
ISO-9002 certification from Bureau Veritas Quality International (BVQI) for
15 out of its 22 bottling plants. BPCL has also received ISO-9002 accrediation
for its refinery, aviation service stations at Mumbai, Delhi, Calcutta and
Bangalore depots at Miraj and Mysore and lubricants blending plant at
Wadilube.
50
Case Study 2 Corporate Governance
and Corporate Social
Responsibility
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
AFFLUENCE FROM EFFLUENTS
RCF’s problem was its two ammonia plants. These plants have been score
spot for the company and have been shut down on more than one occasion. At
the time the plants were setup, it was not mandatory, to include cost of pollution
control equipment in the project cost. But as local residents started complaining
about the pollution levels, RCF started looking for alternatives.
There were modifications going on in both plants. RCF had to wait till these
were complete to be able to estimate the volume of pollutants that would
require treatment. Finally a Ministry of Environment notification in the late
1980’s ordering them to clean up forced RCF into action.
Whether RCF will actually earn its projected income is doubtful. Since the time
the plant has come up, argon prices have crashed due to excess capacity and
intense competiters are mainly the steel and automobile industry, which use
argon for welding. RCF officials however, say they are safe, because even
recovery to synthetic gas stage gives them an IRR of 27 percent, leaving RCF
a comfortable profit margin.
Social Opposition: This view is taken by the business which feel that they have no
obligation to society in which they operate. When they are caught for any offense,
their immediate response is to try to cover it up while denying it.
51
Public Enterprise:
Accountability and 9.5 SOCIAL AUDIT : INTRODUCTION
Governance
It is generally believed today that it is the duty of the privately owned enterprise to
ensure that it does not adversely affect the life of the community in which it operates.
Though the duty is not clearly defined, it is usually thought that the corporate business
should not cause pollution, should not discriminate in employment, should not make
money from insavoury or immoral activities and should not withhold information from
consumers about their products. It is also expected that they should make positive
contribution to the life of the community.
The corporate business has become an integral part of the functioning of any society.
It is the recipient of the benefits and privileges of the State and society in which it
operates. The society therefore expects the corporate business to assume
responsibility towards it. Earlier it had been assumed that the vast material resources
like water, land and air could absorb the wastes of production and neutralise any
potential harmful effects. Man assumed that the natural environment would always
renew itself. It is abundantly clear now that this is not so. It is common knowledge
that society is being threatened by pollution of land, sea and air. To an increasing
degree, business has been creating conditions that have resulted in many social ills,
though the same may not be by design or choice. There are various social abuses,
some germane to the profit persuit, some to the negligent and unscrupulous behavior
of business leaders. Most would agree that if these conditions are permitted to
continue it must inevitably lead to social suicide. Steps must be taken to correct the
abuses.
With changing social and economic values and with increasing expectations of society
from corporate business, the companies that adjust to the rational changes and help in
pioneering such changes are likely to survive and flourish and those which oppose,
block or restrict the changes may find it difficult to survive in future. Economic goals
or corporate business can no longer be separated from social goals.
Firms have to recognize their due responsibilities and consider these in the planning
and action stages. They must have a social policy which means that they must
include in their accounting the direct costs to society of their operations to the extent
possible. They should communicate their social policy not only to the members of the
organization but also to outside groups. Social audit is a tool for judging how a
corporate entity has implemented its social policy.
The increasing demand for socially oriented programmes of one kind or another and
for measurement and disclosure of environmental effects of organizational behaviour
has created pressure for adopting some kind of social auditing procedure. This unit
attempts to provide a general definition of social audit, discusses the various
approaches or methodologies for conducting social audit and points out the difficulties
encountered in measuring social performance etc.
Social audit has been variously defined. As it happens with any new management
technique, there is not yet any definition which has gained acceptance. Bauer and
Fenn define Social audit as “a commitment to systematic assessment of and reporting
of some meaningful definable domain of a company’s activities that have social
impact”. The author’s emphasis is on the assessment and reporting of corporate
social programmes.
52
Dilley defines the social audit as “investigation of an enterprise’s performance as a Corporate Governance
member of the community in which it has its primary impact: such investigations and Corporate Social
Responsibility
consisting of the preparation of an inventory of the socially relevant activities of the
enterprise, qualification (to the extent possible) of the social costs and benefits
resulting from those activities and compilation of the other quantitative information
providing insight into the social performance of the enterprise” (Hindu Business Line,
1997). Dilley’s definition highlights the making of an inventory of the socially relevant
activities and their quantification in terms of costs and benefits.
Caroll and Bailer, describe social auditing “as a form of measurement”. According to
them “Social audit is a natural evolutionary step in the concern for operationalising
corporate social responsibilities and, in its essence, represents a managerial effort to
develop a calculus for gauging the firm’s socially oriented activities. That, it is an
attempt to measure, monitor and evaluate the organizations performance with respect
to its social programmes and social objectives” (Chartered Secretary, Oct, 1997)
Ahmed Belkaoui has attempted to collate the definitions by Bauer and Fenn, and by
Dilley. He states that “Social Audit – much like the financial audit – is an
identification and examination of the activities of the firm in order to assess,
evaluate, measure and report their impact on the immediate social environment”
(Reddy, 1999). The words in bold are important in this definition which require some
elaboration.
1. Identification assures a tracking down and inventory of all the firms activities
having potential impact on the firms environment identification will result in a
definition of the social dimensions of the firms activities in terms of social costs
or social benefits depending on the nature of their impact on the social
environment.
2. Assessment and Evaluation imply the categorisation of the firms impact on its
environment as either positive social benefits or negative social costs.
The nature of social audit can be made more clear if we bring out its salient features.
The areas for social audit include any activity (see Table 9.1) which has a significant
social impact, such as activities affecting environmental quality, consumerism,
opportunities for women and other disadvantaged people in society and similar others.
The second feature about social audit is that it can determine only what an
organization is doing in social areas, not the amount of social good that results from
these activities. It is a process audit rather than an audit for results.
Thirdly, social performance is difficult to audit because most of the results of social
activities occur beyond the company’s gate and the company has no means of
securing data on the results. Even if data are available it is difficult to establish how
many of them have occurred due.
53
Public Enterprise: Table 9.2 Activities Covered by Social Audit
Accountability and
Governance A. Ecology and Environmental Quality:
• Clear-up of existing pollution
• Design of processes to prevent pollution
• Aesthetic improvements
• Noise control
• Dispersion of industry
• Control of land use
• Required recycling
B. Consumerism:
• Truth in labeling, in advertising, and in all business activities
• Product warranty and service
• Control of harmful products
C. Community Needs:
• Use of business expertise to solve community problems
• Reduction of role of business in community power structure
• Aid with health care facilities
• Aid with urban renewal
D. Governmental Relations:
• Restrictions on lobbying
• Control of business in political action
• Extensive new regulation of business
• Restrictions on international operations
E. Business Giving:
• Financial support for artistic activities
• Donations to education
• Financial support for assorted charities
G. Labour Relations:
• Improvement of occupational health and safety
• Prohibition of “export of jobs” through operations in nations with law
labour costs.
• Provision of day-care centres for children of working mothers
• Expansion of employee rights
• Control of pensions, especially vesting of pension rights
• Impatience with authoritarian structures; demand for participation
54 Contd....
Contd.... Corporate Governance
and Corporate Social
Responsibility
H. Shareholder Relations
• Opening of boards of directors to members of public representing various interest
groups
• Prohibitions of operations in nations with “racist” or “colonial” governments
• Improvement of financial disclosure
• Disclosure of activities affecting the environment and social issues
I. Economic Activities
• Control of conglomerates
• Breakup of giant industry
• Restriction of patent use
Thus, social audit need be adopted by every corporation to apprise its shareholders,
investors customers, government and the community of the social activities and
financial results of its working. Such information should be disclosed, as mentioned by
the National Association of Accountants’ Committee on Accounting for Corporate
Social Performance in Canada, for four major categories as below:
In India, the companies in general and the public sector undertakings in particular
should make disclosure of information for the use of people outside the enterprise,
which include:
i) financial institutions and creditors (who are interested in financial position, fund-
flow and debt-paying capacity of the enterprise);
ii) shareholders, academic institutions and consultants (who are interested in
quantitative and qualitative information regarding proper utilization of resources
transferred to the concern);
iii) the government (for knowing about financial and statistical information for
planning and operating of those enterprises and initiating and administering
financial and economic polices and programmes at state and national levels
55
Public Enterprise: iv) trade unions, political leaders (require information for broad labour policy
Accountability and decisions, for etc); and
Governance
v) environments (who need information regarding air and water pollution ecological
imbalances, depletion of resources and conservation of energy).
Disclosure of information should be thus financial and non-financial.
Financial Information
This includes the disclosure of financial position of the firm, the form of balance
sheet, profit and loss accounts, special accounts, audit reports. Such information is
mainly disclosed in quantitative form, such as income and expenditure of the
company, sources and uses of funds, details about assets and liabilities, working
capital, new capital investment, outstanding distribution of earnings, interest taxes
paid, liquidity position and incentives. Financial information reveals the true position of
a company regarding its liquidity and bankruptcy.
Non-Financial Information
56
Corporate Governance
9.7 SOCIAL AUDIT IN INDIA and Corporate Social
Responsibility
In India, the TISCO has been the first company to set up a Social Audit Committee
for conducting social audit of its work under the chairmanship of Justice S.P. Kotwal,
and Prof. Rajini Kothari and Prof. P.G. Mavalankar as members. This committee
was entrusted with the task of “examining and reporting whether, and the extent to
which, the TISCO has fulfilled the objectives contained in Clause 3A of its Articles of
Association regarding its social and moral responsibilities to the consumers,
employees, shareholders, and the local community”. The Committee opined, “On an
examination of all aspects, the company has fulfilled its obligations to all concerned.”
Started with TISCO the social audit has picked up. UTI, the premier financial
institution has also planned for a social audit. In the report for 1993-94, the chairman
of UTI has declared that “to address the question as to what extent this unique
organization has been able to fulfill its responsibilities vis-à-vis its various publics and
society at large. And independent social audit committee of five eminent citizens has
been setup”.
1. Social audit enables the company to take close look at itself and understand
how far the company has lived up to its social objectives.
2. Related to the first benefit is the fact that social audit encourages greater
concern for social performance throughout the organization.
3. Social audit provides data for comparing effectiveness of the different types of
programmes.
4. Social audit provides cost data on social programmes so that management can
relate the data to budgets, available resources, company objectives, and
projected benefits of programmes.
Activities
a) What activities of the organization in which you are working (or with which you
have been associated) fall, in your view, in the area of social audit?
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Public Enterprise: b) Discuss the social reporting done by your organization.
Accountability and
Governance
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9.9 SUMMARY
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Corporate Governance
9.11 REFERENCES and Corporate Social
Responsibility
www.bharatpetroleum.com
‘Corporate Governance and PSU’. Dec. 19, (1996) The Economic Times..
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