COIMBATORE: Companies should ensure that activities under corporate social responsibility (CSR) are more effective and not just do them for namesake, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu said on Tuesday.
Naidu, who was in Coimbatore to inaugurate the 90th year celebrations of the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), also unveiled its 90th year logo and released a special postal cover.
“CSR activities should be done effectively to ensure that they contribute to the overall development of society. Apart from giving importance only to industry, industrialists should also start giving importance to agricultural development, which is needed for the nation’s overall growth.
The Smart City scheme needs the people’s cooperation to be successful, he said. “All the activities should be done smartly. Above all, the people should become smart. Or else the scheme will not be a success. Indore is a good example. Of the city’s 26 lakh people, six lakh gave suggestions for the project. They have a picture of how Indore was, how it is and how it should be. Such cooperation from citizens is essential for the scheme to succeed,” he added.
He lauded ICCI’s efforts to save Noyyal river and various other initiatives as examples for all cities in the nation. Protecting nature is essential for a bright future. “I was shocked to read about the groundwater level going down in Kerala in spite of the recent floods. It is alarming. All of us must give more importance to protecting the environment,” he said.
ICCI Coimbatore president V Lakshminarayanasamy said that the chamber continued to play a vital role in the regions overall developments. Apart from its commerce and industrial activities, ICCI has taken various steps to help the people of Coimbatore. Already, the Defence Minister has assured that to establish a Defence Innovation and Research Centre at Coimbatore. Considering the huge potential of this region, the Central should take steps to establish an industrial corridor and the defence corridor including Coimbatore. The support from the State and Central governments for our region continues to be good. We expect the same support to continue in the coming days also,” he said.