Announcements:
3rd Focus Group Discussion
T-Social Impact Group (T-SIG) convened its 3rd Focus Group Discussion, with a focus on ‘CSR & Women Empowerment’, along with Department of Women Development and Child Welfare on 12th March, 2019 at Novartis, Salarpuria-Sattva Knowledge City, Hyderabad. The Guest of honor for the meetings was Smt. Viziendira Boyi, I.A.S, Director of the Women and Child Development Department.The event witnessed participation from more than 25 corporates such as Infosys, ADP, Wells-Fargo, P&G, TCS, Infosys, Cognizant and PWC, based out of the state of Telangana. It also saw participation from Industry bodies such as NASCOMM and multilateral organisations such as UNICEF.
The Director presented proposals to the corporates present on broadly four topics – i) Adopting an Anganwadi Center ii) Providing infrastructural support mainly rescue vehicles for children under ICPS iii) Supporting women victims of violence. Through Sakhi One-Stop centers and iv) Providing livelihoods supports to women-in-distress sheltered in Swadhar Grehas. Corporates such as ADP and Novartis also showcased their work with women in the meeting encouraging corporates to step forward their initiatives to support women and children. This meeting came at a crucial time near the women’s day celebration where there is a lot of discussion about initiatives in the state to improve the conditions of women
4th Focused Group Discussion
Previously, T-Social Impact Group held focus group discussions in a quarterly format, i.e., once every 3 months. However, noticing the enthusiasm and participation level of all stakeholders – government departments and corporates – T-SIG has decided to conduct bi-monthly meetings. The meetings are designed towards creating one-on-one closed working group engagements focused on specific topics between corporates and government departments which could be transformed into action points for effective collaborations.
On 8th April, 2019, T-Social Impact Group held its 4th Focus Group Discussion on “Lake Restoration”. The meeting, chaired by Smt. D. Harichandana, IAS, West Zonal Commissioner, GHMC, saw the participation of 10 corporates like Infosys, Tata Projects, Cognizant and State Street. Trade associations like Bulk Drug Manufacturers Association, India were also represented at the meeting. A presentation with details of 15 lakes, chosen specifically due to their locations along the IT Corridor was shared by the Commissioner with the corporates. The discussions in the meeting were focused primarily on the immediate need for lake adoption and restoration, support provided by GHMC towards the companies and corporate volunteering opportunities.
Events Calendar
Upon understanding the needs of corporates working actively towards CSR in Telangana, T-SIG has realised that employee volunteering opportunities is largely untapped and much more can be achieved through organising events where corporate employees can volunteer and donate for social causes. As a result, T-SIG has created an Events Calendar, based on important days marked by UN and celebrated worldwide. Through this, T-SIG plans to organise events where corporate employees can volunteer towards developmental issues. if you are HR Head/ Manager of CSR/ Sustainability/ Corporate Affairs/ Corporate Communication, then, you would not want to miss out on these employee engagement opportunities. For more information, please click here.
Spotlight Projects of the Month:
Anganwadi Adoption
- One of the most interesting projects which was revealed through the 3rd Focus Group Discussion of T-Social Impact Group on “Women Empowerment” was the Adoption of Anganwadi project. The Women Welfare and Children Development Department has 35,700 registered anganwadi centers all over Telangana which cater to 4 lakh pregnant and lactating women and 15 lakh children below 6 years of age every year. The Department runs 149 anganwadi service projects in all of these 35,700 anganwadis. However, the Department requires support in creating vibrant spaces for development of women and children.
- The anganwadi centers are one stop centers for all health, nutrition and pre-school services for children and women. Moreover, they also act as resource centres of information for children in the age group of (0-6), adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women. Although the Department runs anganwadi projects in these centers, still there are certain areas in which they require corporate support. The issues faced by women and children in these anganwadis centers are dearth of proper buildings, safe learning and play areas, lack of pre-school material, unavailability of safe storage of drinking water and absence of common areas for pregnant and lactating women.
- We are happy to announce that post our 3rd Focus Group Discussion, many corporates have responded positively to the “Adopt an Anganwadi” project and are currently in discussions with the WCD Department. To know more about this project, please click here.
Lake Restoration
Since many years Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) of the government of Telangana, has been focusing on the restoration, beautification and maintenance of lakes in and around the city of Hyderabad. This was initiated to plan for effective waste management and to enhance the biodiversity in and around the lakes with the ultimate goal of sustainable development of the city
To encourage corporates to come forward and be a part of these initiatives, one of the spotlight projects adopted by T-SIG has been “Lake Restoration” project. T-SIG organised its 2nd Focus Group Discussion on ‘Lake Restoration’ project on 02-November, 2018 at Salesforce. The meeting was highly successful as GHMC and HMDA officials, along with corporates working in this sector, came together to discuss challenges and efficient ways to restore the lakes of Hyderabad.
We are happy to announce that post the 2nd Focus Group Discussion, corporates have also come forward to adopt lakes and work together with the state government. To know more about the lakes that require immediate attention, Click here..
Volunteering Stories:
Volunteering for Career Sathi Program (CSP)
- Career Sathi Program (CSP) is a selective student program providing focused and sustained support for 3 to 6 years to meritorious students hailing from socioeconomically weak backgrounds ultimately leading to employment. It is organised every year by Nirmaan organisation, who started their 5th Cohort this year. A one day selection conference for about 120+ students through personal interviews, group discussions, and SOPs was organised by Nirmaan on 28th April, 2019. Cognizant and Seneca Global employees volunteered for this program as part of their CSR corporate volunteering opportunities. The corporate volunteers interacted with the students, mentors and parents and also scored the 120 students out of which 30 students were chosen for the program.
Volunteering for Water Leadership and Conservation (WaLC)
The Water Leadership and Conservation Alliance (WaLC) emerged to support Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) and GHMC with volunteers to campaign against the wastage of water and conserve it for future generations. A workshop on Water Leadership and Conservation Alliance was organised on 29th April, 2019 to urge for behavioural change through public awareness, motivation and opportunity creation for people to initiate action at individual, family and community level. The workshop also discussed about water saving and conservation methods at Individual level, household and community level and most importantly, at an organisational/institutional level. T-Social Impact Group partnered with HMWSSB and GHMC for the event as Corporate Outreach partner. Through T-Social Impact Group’s facilitation process, Wells Fargo and Cognizant employees participated in this workshop and corporate employees signed up as volunteers for this initiative.
Success Stories:
Lake Adoption by Novartis
- As a result of T-SIG’s 2nd Focus Group Discussion on “Lake Restoration”, Novartis has come forward and adopted two lakes in Hyderabad, Manchirevula and Langerhouse lakes. Novartis, as part of their CSR projects, is working along with GHMC and Dhruvansh organization to restore these lakes.
Upcoming Events:
5th Focus Group Discussion
- Since the launch of T-SIG by Sri KT Rama Rao, Hon’ former Minister for IT, Industries, MA&UD and NRI affairs, it has come a long way forward by organizing CSR events, representing the state of Telangana at regional and national forums and have also contributed at creating positive collaborations between government departments, corporates and non-profit organizations.
- T-SIG is organizing its 5th Focus Group Discussion on Health on 11th of May, 2019. This quarterly meeting is directed towards creating one-on-one closed working group engagements focused on the topic. The meeting will be chaired by Smt. Alagu Varshni, I.A.S, Director, Institute of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of Telangana and the Guest of Honours will be the champions who has worked selflessly in the health sector. If you are a corporate working towards health issues or want to engage yourself actively in this sector, participate in this meeting to encourage peer-learning and have a more holistic understanding of this sector. We will keep you posted on more details!!
Call for Action:
T-SIG as Outreach Partner
T-Social Impact Group is now partnering with corporates to celebrate social change events and extend our support in organizing CSR events. T-SIG can act as the outreach partner for events organized by the CSR team of your company and provide support in terms of branding and accessibility to relevant government officials and implementing partners. We can provide you the following services, on a need-basis, through our partnership:
- Connect you to relevant NGOs working in specific sectors
- Facilitate meetings with relevant Government Department officials
- Connect you with other appropriate corporates for event collaboration
- Assist you in inviting Chief Guests & Guests of Honour to your events by connecting you to Eminent Personalities
- Post about the event on our official social media handles to ensure maximum visibility
- Provide leads of vendors
In addition, we will also try to facilitate media coverage for your CSR events (Digital/Print). To know more details about this, mail us at csr-cell@telangana.gov.in.
