CII & UNICEF

CSR Conference and Exhibition on

Swachh Bharat Mission
12 May 2015: Chennai

CII & UNICEF - CSR Conference and Exhibition on

Swachh Bharat Mission
12 May 2015: 0945 Hrs : Hotel Taj Coromandel, Chennai
Background

The abysmal state of sanitation in India is that only 32% of rural households have
their own toilets and that less than half of Indian households have a toilet at home.
There were more households with a mobile phone than with a toilet. Of the estimated
billion people in the world who defecate in the open, more than half reside in India.

Poor sanitation impairs the health leading to high rates of malnutrition and
productivity losses. Indias sanitation deficit leads to losses worth roughly 6% of its
gross domestic product (GDP) according to World Bank estimates by raising the
disease burden in the country. Children are affected more than adults as the
rampant spread of diseases inhibits childrens ability to absorb nutrients thereby
stunting their growth. A large part of Indias malnutrition burden is owing to the
unhygienic environment in which children grow up. Poor sanitation and high
population density act as a double whammy on Indian children half of whom grow up
stunted. The absence of an effective public health network in a densely populated
country has resulted in an extraordinarily high disease burden.

About 48 per cent of children in India are suffering from some degree of malnutrition.
According to the UNICEF, water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea and respiratory
infections are the number one cause for child deaths in India. Children weakened by
frequent diarrhoea episodes are more vulnerable to malnutrition and opportunistic
infections such as pneumonia. With 638 million people defecating in the open and
44 per cent mothers disposing their childrens faeces in the open, there is a very high
risk of microbial contamination (bacteria, viruses, amoeba) of water which causes

diarrhoea in children. Also, diarrhoea and worm infection are two major health
conditions that affect school children impacting their learning abilities.
By considering all the above said issues, Indian Govt has launched the
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan' (English: Clean India Mission) and the components of the
programme are:
a) Construction of individual sanitary latrines for households below the poverty
line with subsidy (80%) where demand exists.
b) Conversion of dry latrines into low-cost sanitary latrines.
c) Construction of exclusive village sanitary complexes for women providing
facilities for hand pumping, bathing, sanitation and washing on a selective
basis where there is not adequate land or space within houses and where
village panchayats are willing to maintain the facilities.
d) Setting up of sanitary marts.
e) Total sanitation of villages through the construction of drains, soakage pits,
solid and liquid waste disposal.
f) Intensive campaign for awareness generation and health education to create
a felt need for personal, household and environmental sanitation.

This Conference organized by CII & UNICEF established a platform of

brainstorming by concerned experts and the stakeholders who work in the
area of water & sanitation.

The highlights of this one day exclusive event were:

Central and State Governments to provide details about Swachh Bharat
Abhiyan where private sector can get associated directly or indirectly as a part
of their CSR activities.
Presentations by corporates having experience in handling WASH and how
they managed the CSR effectively.
Presentations by NGOs who are actively involved in Swachh Bharat under
CSR initiatives with corporate sector and also on their own initiatives
A place for networking between corporate and NGOs which will help them to
understand each other better for future partnerships.
Eminent personnel from various sectors will be invited to be part of the
program and share their views and ideas on CSR activities.
opportunities to Companies / their employees to understand what activities
can be undertaken under CSR.

The conference was inaugurated

by His Excellency the Governor of
Tamil Nadu and he said Industry
should be an able partner to
Government and must use its
strength and competencies and
lend its expertise to a wide array
of

programmes

which

would

impact society, said Dr K. Rosaiah, His Excellency the Governor of Tamil Nadu, at

the CSR Conference and Exhibition on Swachh Bharat Mission organised by the
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Southern Region along with UNICEF.
Launching the CII-SR CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Gateway, he said that
the platform is part of the nation-building exercise, connecting businesses with social
engagement.

Describing the 20th Century as the golden age of philanthropy with many big
industrialists spending a large portion of their wealth for societys welfare, Dr
Rosaiah highlighted that, in India, charity is no longer only driven by religious
purposes as was the case in the pre-industrialisation era. We may boast of being
one of the first countries to create a space for collaboration between the Government
and the NGOs (non-government organisations) to bring about development, yet we
have a long way to go to fully utilise this as a springboard to strengthen our
corporate and environment responsibility, he stressed.
CSR policy should function as a built-in self regulating mechanism whereby business
would monitor and ensure adherence to law, ethical standards, and international
norms, said Dr Rosaiah.

The CSR exhibition brought together many agencies involved in a variety of

sanitation projects and provided eminent opportunity for peer-to-peer collaboration,
and ready access to experience and insights of sector experts.

Earlier, while delivering the opening remarks, Ms Rajshree Pathy, Chairperson, CII
Southern Region, and Chairman
& Managing Director, Rajshree
Sugars & Chemicals Ltd, said that
the CII Foundation, set up in
2011, works towards inclusive
development

by

providing

meaningful

bridge

between

marginalised

communities

and

donors, especially corporates, by

providing strategy guidance on
CSR, and also developing and managing high-impact programmes in the areas such

as skill development, maternal health, and disaster relief. CII has set up task forces
at the national and regional levels to promote and facilitate industry participation in
the Swachh Bharat Mission, she stated.

In his special address, Mr B Santhanam, Past Chairman, CII Southern Region and
President and MD, Flat Glass South Asia, Malaysia & Egypt,
Saint-Gobain Glass India Ltd, said
that India is the first nation to
mandate social responsibility for
the

businesses

company law.

through

the

The moot point,

however, is that the internal and

external preconditions are yet to
enable the business firms to execute their CSR programmes in an efficient and
effective manner, Mr Santhanam observed. Corporate houses need different set of
capabilities to design and implement effective and meaningful programmes and work
in synergy with other stakeholders, he added.

The CSR Gateway, Mr Santhanam outlined, brings together templated and

customised services to meet the requirements of corporates. It offers a single
window solution for CSR needs with respect to capacity building, programme
designing, monitoring and evaluation. Also, it enables regular project updates and
financial statements in standard format on the CSR investment in compliance with
the legal requirements, he elaborated.
Mr Job Zachariah, Chief State
Office for TN & Kerala, UNICEF
India emphasized the need of
santitation. Open defecation is
the major cause for diseases,
because of virus and bacteria
released

in

open

defecation.

Open defecation leads to death and malnutrition among children. It is estimated that
40% of death of children due to diarrhoea, can be prevented by use of toilets. Open
defecation leads to stunting among children, as per the latest studies.

Open defecation is also a matter of dignity and safety of women as well as their
equality. According to the world bank study in 2010, open defecation leads to
economic loss equivalent to 6.4% of GDP of India. The state domestic product of
Tamil Nadu is about 8 lakh crore per year at current prices. This means that
economic loss caused by open defecation in Tamil Nadu is Rs 50,000 crore per year
or equivalent to loss of Rs.30,000 to per family annually in Tamil Nadu

For India to have broad-based and inclusive growth, it is imperative to minimise

inequalities, urged Mr N K Ranganath, Chairman, CSR Sub Committee, CII-SR and
Managing

Director,

Grundfos

Pumps India Pvt Ltd, in his

closing remarks. Industry should
work

towards

improving

the

community and the planet for the

larger good, and also for its own
survival. We see that enterprises
that

adopt

the

sustainability

approach are able to scale up

their

business

manifold,

he

added. Stating that corporate social responsibility has taken the shape of
accountability, encompassing business ethics, Mr Ranganath reminded that
companies have to now address the needs of all the stakeholders, not just the
shareholders or owners of the firm. CSR is not to be seen as charity, but as core
business strategy, going forward. It is actually about giving back to the society a part
of what we take from it. Organisations of the future will have to have a purpose that
is greater than just doing business, he said.
The first session was a panel discussion on Need for Swachh Bharat Mission &
Role of CSR and their implications for businesses Mr B Santhanam, Past
Chairman, CII Southern Region and President and MD, Flat Glass - South Asia,

Malaysia & Egypt, Saint-Gobain Glass India Ltd moderated the session in which
eminent personalities from various fields shared their view. The speakers were

Mr Arun Dobhal, WASH Specialist, UNICEF, TN & Kerala

Mr Avijeet Kumar, Director, Charities Aid Foundation India

Mr Arun Krishnamurthy, Founder, Environmentalist Foundation of India

Mr Bharadwaj Tirunellai , Vice President & Head-Consumer Business Unit,

WaterHealth International (WHI)

Mr Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, Bombay Stock Exchange

Mr B Santhanam explained about the topic of the discussion and introduced the
panellist to the audience and invited them to share their views in this

Mr

Arun

Dobhal,

WASH

Specialist, UNICEF, TN & Kerala,

Mentioned India contributes more
than 60 % of sanitation crises.
Due to lack of proper sanitation
facilities and awareness, mainly

children are affected with ill health, mal nutrition, and immunity problems. In Tamil
Nadu, in last few years we see a significant increase of 13% in the usage of proper
sanitation facilities. The efforts of the state government to make Tamil Nadu free
from open defecation 2019 is welcomed and its going to be a huge task. We need to
construct toilets for 62.7 lakhs house hold that is 3800 toilets per day.

The behavioural change is very essential. With this change only people will start
using the toilets. The possible collaboration areas are
Corporates can adopt a Panchayat, Block. Or even a district and construct toilets
Corporates can help in capacity building and monitoring and evaluation of usage of
these toilets. They also can promote group hand washing programme sin the
schools. Spreading the message of proper sanitation and hygiene through IEC
materials. Develop proper technology in the sanitation field that is low cost and
environment friendly. Promote the usage of sanitary napkin. Installation on vending
machines and incinerator

Mr

Avijeet

Kumar,

Director,

Charities Aid Foundation India,

talked about his firm that its a
New

Delhi

based

institution

which is helping the corporates in

planning

designing

and

implementing CSR activities. The

expectations from the Swachh
Bharat Initiatives are clean India
an there by Citizen adopt good habits. There are care good number of companies
who focus on water and sanitation.
Charities Aid Foundation India has launched the programme called right to
sanitation under this they have adapted 2000 schools and 200 Households. In
another initiative called Banega Swachh India they are trying to bring about
behavioural change in the people of India.
According to Mr Avijeet Kumar three As are important they are Access, Awareness
and Action

The strategy has to be holistic with outcome indicators. Invest in proper

planning. Involvement of NGHOs

Not to concentrate on short term investment but long term partnerships

Mr Arun Krishnamurthy, Founder, Environmentalist Foundation of India, Urged the

participants

that

the

programme

also

has

entire
to

be

environmental centric rather than

human centric. Need to give
importance

to

Nature

too.

Corporates and NGOs can spent

their time and energy in Cleaning
the

ponds,

neighbourhood.

Rivers
The

and
water

bodies and nature in as a whole.

Mr Bharadwaj Tirunellai, Vice President & Head-Consumer Business Unit, Water

Health

International

(WHI),

mentioned the important of safe

water, without this component the
sanitation mission cannot achieve
its goal.

As pet a study on the CSR spent

on

the

companies

by

IIM

Udayapur, it reveals that There is

proper

Governance

and

disclosure of CSR activities but majority of the companies lack stakeholder impact
assessment and sustainability.

A project needs Financial, Institutional, environmental, technical and social

dimensions to be sustainable.

The current act would bring in desirable result if there is a focused approach to
implement a sustainable model which creates a positive long term impact that can be
measured and reported

Mr Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD &

CEO, Bombay Stock Exchange,
explained the need to all the
stakeholders coming together for a
common cause and performing
their duties properly. A platform
like CSR Exchange would help to
identify

proper

project

and

implementing partners.

Mr Santhanam, in his concluding remark, urged the NGOs also should come forward
in creating such platform like CSR Gateway.

The second session was chaired by Mr N K Ranganath, Chairman, CSR Sub

Committee CII SR and Managing Director, Grundfos Pumps India Pvt Ltd and the
theme of discussion was Technological solutions for WATER, SANITATION
AND HEALTH

The speakers were

Prof T Pradeep, Professor DST Unit of Nano science and Thematic Unit of
Excellence, Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras

Mr P R Ganapathy, President (India), Villgro Innovations Foundation

Mr Rohan Kanungo, Senior Executive Marketing, Excel Industries Ltd

Dr Aditi Mishal, Associate Professor, Symbiosis Institute of Operations

Management

Mr N K Ranganath gave an introductory remark about the subject and welcomed all
the panelist

Prof T Pradeep, Professor DST

Unit

of

Nano

science

and

Thematic Unit of Excellence,

Department of Chemistry, Indian
Institute of Technology, Madras,
Spoke about the need to have
clean water and various method
of cleaning water.
Safe water is possible with nano
technology. Safety standards are changing every day so the technology needs to be
updated. We can create pure water through Nano technology. Nano technology is
finding solutions for easy purification of the water.

Mr P R Ganapathy, President
(India),

Villgro

Innovations

Foundation, spoke about the cost

effectiveness of technology. In
the field it has to very low price
for

the

people/community

access
Behavioural

any

to

technology.

change

is

also

necessary to make them use of

new technology.

Villgro Innovations Foundation supports entrepreneurs with mentoring to promote

technology that is viable to the users. Villgro has trained entrepreneurs in
Pondicherry to check the purity of water which the public use. Due to this the public
can check the purity of the water and use it. Another innovation scheme what they
tried in Pune with the support of corporates is Loo Reward. This helps the people to
use toilet. Every time they use the toilet they get some points as reward, and on
maturity they can get some soap or similar materials from the stall.

Mr Rohan Kanungo, Senior

Executive
Industries

Marketing,
Ltd,

Excel

explained

the

need for waste management as

part of Swachh Bharat Mission.
He

also

technology

explained

various

for

waste

management by Excel Industries.

Waste

management

is

also

equally important in the Mission like water management and bio toilets. In India, 70
Million tons of waste produced annually in which only 10% properly managed.

Allotting a space for this management is not possible especially in metro cities as the
land price is very high. So we need to go for another alternative which is technically
sound. Segregation of waste at the source is a very good practise. The excel
industries have introduced Organic Waste Converter (OWC) for waste management

Dr

Aditi

Mishal,

Associate

Professor, Symbiosis Institute of

Operations Management. Spoke
about the initiatives taken by
Symbiosis Institute of Operations
Management in the Clean India
Mission.

The major work is installing bio

toilets for 10crore people visiting Kumbh Mela at Nasik. This is a huge challenge for
the government and local body. These bio toilets consist of four latrines, two urinals
and a wash basin for the need of the pilgrims. The project is completely driven by the
volunteers and students.

Mr N K Ranganath, Concluded the session by saying that the various kinds of

technology for Cleaning water, Bio toilets, and waste management has to be cost
effective for the generals public. He also mentioned the need for collaborative efforts
from NGOs, Corporates and Academia towards this goal.

The third session was moderated by Mr Gagandeep Singh Bedi, IAS, Secretary to
Government, Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, Tamil Nadu and
the speaker were

Mr Ashoke Joshi, IAS (Rtd), Chairman, Srinivasan Services Trust

Prof Venkatesh Kumar, Head, CSR Hub, Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Mr Elango Rangasamy, Scientist, Former President - Kuthambakkam

Panchayat & Ashoka fellow

Mr S Khurram Naayaab, Manager CSR and Social Compliance, Cairn

India Ltd

These speakers took part in the discussion on CSR Solutions and Way Forward on
Swachh Bharat initiatives

Mr Bedi, Welcomed all the panellists and briefed about the Swachh Bharat Initiative
in Tamil Nadu.

He explained about where Tamil Nadu stands and what help the TN Government
look forward from the corporates.
Tamil Nadu is very advanced in
rural development but in the field
of sanitation a long way to go. As
per

the

baseline

survey

conducted in the year 2013, 55%

of the households are not having
toilets

and

another

14%

is

dysfunctional.

The subsidy given to the beneficiary is raised to Rs 12000 per toilet but not in
advance. There are two schemes which is running a. Swachh Bharat Mission and
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. In these schemes
State government contributes 25% and GOI the rest.

Target approach is not advisable in the field of sanitation. Its only motivation and
systematic approach will help to solve the issue. And all the stake holders
involvement is essential.

The state government has involved SHGs in create awareness and motivate the
public and a small incentive is paid to them over and above the toilet subsidy. And
the State government is planning to construct 15 Lacks toilets in this year.
Another key area is solid waste management. Lack of man power in the village is a
strong set back for the scheme.

Even though there is a shortage of toilets, sanitary complexes are available

/accessible to the public, which includes toilets, urinals and wash basin. The
Corporates can help though volunteers to motivate and create awareness. Also they
can help the poor by providing fund in advance to construct toilets. In the solid
wastes management corporates can help by creating awareness and sponsoring
equipments and tricycle. They also can contribute technical assistance for waste
management.

Mr Ashoke Joshi, IAS (Rtd),

Chairman, Srinivasan Services
Trust, explained the work of
Seenivasan Services trust in the
remote areas of the 5 States.
They work with 3000 villages and
their motto is clean village. Any
CSR activity or working with
society

needs

building

trust.

They should feel that you a part of the community.

Integrated development is important in village development. To achieve this they

have to be financial secure. In order to have a clean village we need to create pride
in the villagers. Create awareness from the Aganvadies. And finally need to find
innovative ideas to solve problems

Prof Venkatesh Kumar, Head,

CSR Hub, Tata Institute of Social
Sciences spoke about the role of
Tata institute of Social science.
The organization provided end to
end

solution

for

the

CSR

initiatives for the public sector

companies. The problem here is
that the projects are target driven.
Behavioural change is not at all addressed. UNICEF played an important role to
address this issue.

The first phase has to be Behaviour changes and the second phase construction
Another Problem with the public sector is Process oriented. This is not in the case of
private sector. Government can converge the recourses and the NGOs can definitely
do a lot in the field of capacity building

Mr

Elango

Scientist,

Rangasamy,

Former

Kuthambakkam

President

Panchayat

&

Ashoka fellow, Emphasised the

need

for

toilets

with

more

facilities, out of his experience.

He saw that the toilets provided
by the agencies are not with
enough ventilation and proper
doors. Also the community needed Bathrooms rather than toilets. With much
research he developed a model with estimated cost of Rs 20000, which included
proper door, ventilation and bathing space.

Then he realised the need for water to use the toilets. After much thought water
facility also was attached to the toilets. Then the total cost of went up to 22000. He
mobilised this from the government Rs 12000 and individual family contributed Rs
2500.00 and the rest mobilised out of CSR fund and bank loan. With the support

from the corporates and bank he was able to find a solution for the open defecation
in the Panchayat. He is also promoting pre fabricated toilets structure. This creates
employment opportunity for the villagers.

In the process of implementation he faced lot of problems such as lack of space,

mason raw materials etc., The Panchayat supplies 10 lacks litter of water to the
households, more than 90% of this water is converted as grey water. He found out a
solution for this as this grey water is treated and used for the kitchen garden. And
now in almost all the household they produce the vegetable they require.

Now he is in the process of making a Panchayat academy. Also he is promoting

source segregation for the solid waste management. Kuthambakkam Panchayat is
role model in Swachh Bharat initiative incorporating all the components.

Mr

Khurram

Naayaab,

Manager CSR and Social

Compliance, Cairn India Ltd,
explained

about

the

CSR

activities of Care India. Broadly

its divided into three. Water, Heal
and sanitation. They mainly work
in

the

Barmer

district

of

Rajasthan, where the people

face acute shortage of drinking water. They have built up RO Plants for the public. At
present 34 RO plants and currently planning to install 300 more. The operation and
maintenance of the RO Plants are taken care by the village water committee. These
RO plants provided any time water (ATW) to the community

In the health sector, The company has provided MHV Motor Health Van which goes
to the village for medical screening. Integrated Healthcare, in which they educate the
people Sanitary Napkin Production Unit, they have set up 3 units in the district,
managed by 20 women. They also Support to District Hospital, Barmer in
infrastructure development,

The company work on both Household Sanitation and School Sanitation following
are the key work of the company in the area of sanitation
200 schools toilets in 130 schools across Barmer and Jalore districts of
Rajasthan
Targeting more than 35,000 students
Cost: INR 2 lacs per boys toilet and 2.5 lacs per girls toilets
Innovation use of bio-digesters instead of leach and soak pit
Looking at waterless toilets moving forward
Asst. Mason Training was imparted to 56 women; in 2 batches in the CEC
Satellite Training Centre at Bhimda in Baiytu Block of Barmer. Post completion of
the training the women will be engaged in construction of household toilets in
this village and other neighboring villages in the vicinity.
The trained women have formed a group and started taking contracts for toilet
constructions.
Unique model for Sanitation and Women Empowerment.

Mr Bedi Concluded the session saying Government fund and support is available
across the state. But the Initiatives from the local bodies need to be improved.
Motivation is the key factor. And in this great initiative everybody has come forward.

The conference was attended by more than 350 delegates from corporates and
NGOs. Many appreciated the initiatives taken by CII and UNICE for putting this
together. There was an exhibition related to the sanitation work by the NGOs and
corporates participated in this.

Way forward
The stake holders are expected to work for the following goals. In the available
platforms should be made to create awareness and thereby making India A clean
India,

Addressing Open defecation as an unacceptable social practice

Community behavior change towards sanitation Knowledge, Attitude,

Practice

Feasible sustainable technological solutions

Strengthening Service Delivery

Integrating Sanitation and Hygiene practices including hand washing

Promoting proper functioning of sewerage systems and ensuring connections

of households to them.

Promoting recycle and reuse of treated waste water for non potable
applications will be encouraged.

Regulating proper disposal and treatment of sludge from on-site installations

(septic tanks, pit latrines, etc).

Ensuring collection, safe confinement and disposed of human waste after

treatment to prevent any hazard to public health or the environment.

Promoting access to households with safe sanitation facilities (including

proper disposal arrangements).

Promoting community-planned toilets in places where floating population is

high.

Adequate availability and 100% upkeep and management of Public Sanitation

facilities in all Urban Areas, to rid them of open defecation and environmental
hazards.

Generating awareness about open defecation, spitting in public places and

their linkages with public and environmental health amongst the communities
and the institutions.

Promoting mechanisms to bring about and sustain behavioural changes

aimed at adoption of healthy sanitation practices.

Access to adequate sanitation facilities reduces the loss of mandays due to

illness. Further, it also results in reduction of medical expenditure on health
grounds.

Volunteerism sensitizing the community on hygiene and sanitation

Link Worker as interface between Corporate and community

Sanitary napkin vending machines and incinerators at girls schools

Providing RO units

Support R&D for Safe and eco friendly technologies - disposal of wastes and
solid waste management

CII and UNICEF can formulize a platform to address the needs in the area of
sanitation to provide technical support for finalizing the strategy document and the
action plan for the implementation of the project.

The strategy can address the following components:

1. Good quality infrastructure for school sanitation facilities separately for girls
and boys. This will include construction of separate toilets, potable drinking
water facility, group hand washing facilities, rain water harvesting systems
and Incinerators for girls toilets. The focus is to have child and girl friendly
WASH facilities in schools. The design of the facilities will include provision for
Children with special needs. Coordination with the concerned government
departments to ensure regular water supply to the schools will be carried out.

2. Operation and Maintenance of the constructed assets for a period of at least

one year after the completion of the construction and thereafter handing over
to the Education Department.
3. Capacity Building Initiatives for teachers, HMs, SMC members, students on
proper usage of WASH facilities and demonstrating sustainable sanitation and
hygiene behaviors
4. Monitoring of the entire process from construction to usage of the WASH
assets can be done.

Paper Clippings

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