The 5th ICC Social Impact Summit & Awards was held on 16th January at Hotel Taj Bengal to award companies who have made noteworthy achievements in creating social impacts through Corporate Social Responsibility. The event witnessed the esteemed presence of Dr. Shashi Panja, Hon’ble Minister, Department of Industries, Commerce & Enterprises and Department of Women and Child Development and Social Welfare, Govt. of West Bengal; Mr. Sanjay Budhia, Past President, ICC & MD – Patton Group; Ms. Rowan Ainsworth, Consul-General, Australian Consulate- General, Kolkata and Dr. Rajeev Singh, Director General, ICC.
The event aimed to recognize and celebrate the social impact initiatives taken by various organizations and individuals. The summit included a technical session on the emergence of sustainability in CSR followed by an award ceremony.
Mr. Sanjay Budhia, Past President of ICC and Managing Director of Patton Group emphasized the importance of CSR and its impact on society while giving the welcome address and said, “The focus of this summit is innovative partnership mechanisms that can be adopted by corporates, NGOs & implementing agencies. CSR is very valuable for the community and the companies as well. CSR is a way of providing social power to the companies. The ICC Social Impact Awards that are being given today will recognize corporates, NGOs and implementing agencies whose activities are aligned with social transformation and upliftment of the society.”
Speaking at the event, Chief Guest Dr. Shashi Panja, Hon’ble Minister, Department of Industries, Commerce & Enterprises and Department of Women and Child Development and Social Welfare, Govt. of West Bengal, said, “I want to congratulate all the winners and thank ICC for taking the initiative to organise such an event. The jury did an excellent job selecting the winners among all the nominations. Heritage companies implemented CSR much before the law was established in Bengal. This ICC Social Impact Summit & Awards is a very good way to convey the message of the platforms available for interaction and contribution. From birth to death, giving life an honor, prestige, and dignity, that we can offer each other. ICC is doing a great job providing opportunities to the companies creating a social impact.”
Dr. Vibha Dhawan, Director General, TERI (The Energy & Resources Institute) gave insightful information on CSR and stated, “My happiest congratulations to all the awardees. As corporates, you have taken much larger responsibility by enlisting the aid of NGOs and other partners. This platform is unique and the most credible platform for honouring the CSR efforts that Indian corporations and NGOs have done to improve and build India’s social environment.”
While offering the vote of thanks, Dr. Rajeev Singh, Director General, ICC, gave insights on the ICC’s endeavours to support social impact initiatives internationally and said, “I want to thank all of the awardees on behalf of ICC for their contributions to society as a whole. Because the businesses are affecting change and having an impact locally, it is a pleasure for us to see the amazing job that they are doing.”