‘No bigger religion than to help others’— Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde says at The CSR Journal Excellence Awards 2022

By The CSR Journal – February 25, 2023  Shri Eknath Shinde, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra, addressed the audience as the ‘Chief Guest’ at The CSR Journal Excellence Awards 2022 – Fifth Edition which was hosted on the 25th February, 2023, at The National Stock Exchange, BKC, Mumbai.

The Chief Minister addressed a gathering of over 250 individuals including senior bureaucrats, public representatives, social activists, youth leaders, artists, members of India Inc. and meritorious students representing the future of India, during the fifth edition of The CSR Journal Excellence Awards. As it has been since the very inception, this year also, the theme for our awards was ‘India First’ with a focus on Youth Empowerment. Addressing the audience, the Chief Minister said, “Any kind of social work should be done from the heart. It is a big thing to identify those people who need help and support. The corporate companies which are present here today, you all are doing a great job by extending your help and support to those who need it the most. It is only possible to share their pain, if you feel it. I would like to congratulate all the winners this evening for your amazing social work. It is a huge responsibility for the jury members also to select the winners. Those who have received the award, their responsibility has increased because you will now inspire more people to come forward and do good work which in turn will benefit the society. There is no bigger religion than helping others.”

Shri Mangal Prabhat Lodha, Hon'ble Minister of Tourism, Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Women & Child Development, Government of Maharashtra, graced the event as our ‘Guest of Honour’ enlightening and inspiring the youth through his wit and intelligence.

Mr Amit Upadhyay, Editor-in-Chief, The CSR Journal, said at The CSR Journal Excellence Awards, “We at The CSR Journal do not define CSR only as Corporate Social Responsibility. This is because, CSR, in the form of Citizen Social Responsibility plays a major role, particularly in India. The level of development we want India to accomplish cannot be attained without the support and involvement of the populace.”

The prestigious event was hosted by Mumbai’s favourite RJ Rangeeli Ruchi who kept the audience enthralled with her unique style of presentation. Noted Sufi singer and the voice winner 2019 Sumit Saini rendered a soulful performance on the occasion while popular stand-up comedian Chirag Panjwani tickled the audience’s funny bones with his humour and sarcasm.

India mandated CSR in 2014, and since then the area has seen enormous growth potential for human development. With an aim to recognise the efforts of India Inc. in CSR, The CSR Journal Excellence Awards were organised. Hon’ble Chief Minister Shri Eknath Shinde and Hon’ble Minister Shri Mangal Prabhat Lodha felicitated winners of the Excellence Awards – Edition 5, across 5 categories including Education and Skill Training, Health and Sanitation, Environment, Women Empowerment and Child Welfare, and Agriculture and Rural Development. The top five winners were Jindal Steel and Power, National Mineral Development Corporation Limited, SBI Foundation, PVR Limited and Tata Capital Financial Services Limited from the respective categories. 

The CSR Journal is pleased to announce a special category of awardees this year:

Dr. Abhay Bang and Dr. Rani Bang, Founder & Director, Society for Education, Action, and Research in Community Health, from Gadchiroli, Maharashtra, were honoured with ‘The CSR Journal’s Lifetime Achievement Award - 2022’.

‘The CSR Journal Award forExcellence in Future Leadership – 2022’ was conferred upon Shri. Sudhir Mungantiwar, Minister of Forests, Cultural Affairs and Fisheries, Government of Maharashtra for his exceptional contribution to Nation Building.

Honourable Member of Parliament Dr. Shrikant Shinde was felicitated with ‘The CSR Journal’s Leadership for Social Change Award – 2022’ for his contribution as an inspiring leader and social worker.

Patna-based Khan Sir who enjoys a fan following on social media as a digital educator, was honoured with ‘The CSR Journal Youth Icon Award - 2022’.

Influencer and actor Prajakta Koliwas felicitated with ‘The CSR Journal Influencing Youth Icon Award - 2022’.

Muthoot Finance Limited’s project Cup of Life - a Guinness World Record campaign, was recognised with ‘The CSR Journal’s Innovation and Corporate Leadership in Healthcare Award – 2022’.

Friends Union for Energizing Lives (FUEL) was recognised with ‘The CSR Journal’s Skilling for Capacity Building & Livelihood Generation Award’.

Mr. Sanjay Kumar from Manjari Foundation was honoured with ‘The CSR Journal’sExcellence in Business & Society Award– 2022’

Mr. Yatnesh Pandey from GreenPly Industries Ltd was honoured with ‘The CSR Journal’s Quality Business Practices Award – 2022’

Annamrita Foundation was honoured with ‘The CSR Journal’s Social Welfare & Growth Award for Holistic Approach to Delivery of Social Safety – 2022’

Kulbir Ahlawat was felicitated with ‘The CSR Journal’s Social Welfare & Growth Award 2022’ for Social Upliftment in Rural Areas.

Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT Bombay) was our Knowledge Partner for the shortlisting process and background research which was done for months ahead of the event. The winners were chosen based on personal assessment of the jurors, following a live Q&A round which was conducted virtually before the event with the representatives of the project/ programme in the respective categories.

Following is the list of our Honourable Jury Members at The CSR Journal Excellence Awards 2022

Education & Skill Training

J.S. Saharia, IAS (Retd.), former-State Election Commissioner, Maharashtra, former-Chief Secretary, Government of Maharashtra&Chairman, ISHAD
Ranjitsinh Disale, Educationist, Winner, Global Teacher Prize (2020) & Advisor, The World Bank
Abhay Ojha, Chief Executive Officer, Zee Media

Women Empowerment & Child Welfare

Yashasvi Yadav, IPS, Special IGP, Maharashtra Cyber Department
Nidhi Chaudhary, IAS, Joint Commissioner, Sales Tax
Reena Jha Tripathi, IRS, Chief Commissioner of Income Tax-1, Mumbai, Mumbai Region

Environment

Prof. Bakul Rao, Centre for Technology Alternatives for Rural Areas , IIT-Bombay
R. A. Rajeev, IAS (Retd.), former-Metropolitan Commissioner, MMRDA, Mumbai & Director, Urban World Consulting
Shankar Deshpande, Chief, Town & Country Planning Division at Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority & Director, MMR-EIS

Agriculture & Rural Development

Prof. Surinder Singh Jodhka, Centre for the Study of Social Systems, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Sumit Kumar, IRS, Commissioner, Income Tax, Kanpur
Vishwanath Giriraj, IAS (Retd.), former-Chairman, Fifth State Finance Commission, Maharashtra & current, Chief Executive Officer, Maharashtra Bamboo Promotion Foundation

Health & Sanitation

Dr Bhaskar Chatterjee, IAS (Retd.), Formerly, Director General & CEO, Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, New Delhi.
Dr Rajendra Bharud, IAS, Commissioner, Tribal Research & Training Institute
Ajit Kumar Jain, IAS (Retd.), former-State Information Commissioner, Maharashtra, former Addtl. Chief Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra & currently the Chairman and Managing Director of ERAF - Environmental Research Foundation

Meanwhile, this year, The CSR Journal’s Special Commendation Award in Corporate Social Responsibility was awarded to:

• Capgemini Technology Services India Limited
• Castrol India Limited
• Coca-Cola India Private Limited
• Dell International Services India Pvt. Ltd.
• L&T Technology Services
• Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Limited
• Sanofi India Limited
• SBI General Insurance Company Limited
• Schaeffler India
• TATA Power
• United Breweries Limited

The CSR Journal is now available on Andromeda OTT App Andromeda OTT App is the only end to end integrated OTT platform in the country where all OTT platforms can be accessed with a single login. The CSR Journal will be a part of this offering of the Andromeda OTT app.

We hereby extend our heartfelt gratitude to our partners for The CSR Journal Excellence Awards 2022. Our partners include:

EXCHANGE PARTNER - NATIONAL STOCK EXCHANGE

CO-PARTNERS – MMRDA & MIDC

ASSOCIATE PARTNERS - RELIANCE INDUSTRIES LIMITED, MSRDC & MAHAGENCO

STREAMING PARTNER - ANDROMEDA

KNOWLEDGE PARTNER - IIT BOMBAY

TV PARTNERS - ZEE NEWS, ZEE BUSINESS, ZEE 24 TAAS

DIGITAL PARTNER - INDIADOTCOM DIGITAL PRIVATE LIMITED

INTERNATIONAL RADIO PARTNER – FUNASIA 104.9 FM

PR PARTNER - ADFACTORS PR

GIFT PARTNER - KARMA ART GALLERY

PRINT PARTNER - FREE PRESS JOURNAL

HYPERLOCAL INFORMATION PARTNERS - PUBLIC & INSHORTS

TALENT PARTNERS - LIVECLEFS & ON CALL ENTERTAINMENT

DESIGN PARTNER - PIXBURG

EVENT PARTNER - SUTRAA

The upcoming edition of The CSR Journal print magazine will feature insightful columns and articles about our prestigious awards show.