Social Responsibility — All The Initiatives of Continental India in 2021
A year that was presumed to bring relief only witnessed tougher conditions for individuals from all quarters. The global pandemic reared its ugly face once again, leaving irreparable damage in its aftermath. The world will eventually move towards a sense of normalcy.
Deepa: “2021 was a year that signified landmarks in terms of Continental India‘s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives. Identifying key focus areas with a firm understanding of the global scenario, coupled with our own vision, added heavily to the success of Continental India’s CSR wing — Conscience. The relentless efforts of our volunteers, who showcased a fabulous sense of altruism in the face of adversity, was a major contributing factor in what Conscience has been able achieve over the last 12 months.”
The fruits of Conscience’s efforts were quantified as Continental India was awarded the ‘Golden Peacock Occupational Health & Safety Award’ for 2020, a benchmark of Corporate Excellence worldwide for the past 29 years.
Conscience has not remained tied to select areas of interest, and it is safe to say that our consistent efforts serve as a reminder of the path that has been paved for bigger and better initiatives in the near future.
A look into our initiatives from 2021:
Women For Manufacturing
It is no secret that women have been majorly under-represented in the manufacturing sector for years now. Studies showed that in India, only three to 12 percent of the workforce in manufacturing and technical vocations are made up of women. It is a stereotype that has been constructed over generations and one, we felt, needed to be shattered.
This objective of ours gave rise to the Women for Manufacturing program in June of 2021. The initiative was meticulously designed to inspire, educate, and employ women from difficult socio-economic backgrounds. The plan included inspiring a young generation of girls from government schools and ITI institutions across Bangalore and Gurgaon about the perks of working in the industry.
The third component of the project focuses on educating and employing those in need, who lacked the strength and support to pursue technical courses.
The program is targeted at women from under-privileged backgrounds wherein we use a stringent process to identify the most deserving candidates, train them, and eventually secure jobs on the shop floor across manufacturing plants in the Bangalore and Gurgaon areas.
Beginning with mapping of the target audience based on relevance and geographical areas, we proceed to then counsel the selected individuals on what they can expect. Once the initial groundwork is laid, we then work towards building customized courseware and choosing the ideal training processes.
The final stage involves liaising with local industries to ensure optimum output for the client and candidate alike. Through the entirety of the certification program, there is also a thorough assessment system that helps us map the progress of the candidates.
With the aid of our NGO partner, the program has grown organically, and we have been able to place nearly 100 women in different industries across both locations.
What has been a real source of inspiration has been the fact that about 80 percent of the candidates that partake in the training program have successfully found employment with further placement drives still in progress.
This number has been on the rise as the placement drives don’t pause or stop with our target being 100 percent placement.
Water Conservation and Restoration in Anekal
Over the last couple of decades, the dame done to the environment has made us sit up and take cognizance. Increasing emission levels and waste pollution are eating through the planet at alarming rates.
Thus, we charted an action plan that looked at our immediate surroundings around the manufacturing plant in Bangalore and decided to initiate a mega sustainable water conservation project as part of an integrated rural development program.
Infrastructure will include the construction of a mini reservoir, four check dams, and 500 absorption trenches that will eventually quantify into conservation of 30,00,000 liters of water a year.
This will subsequently facilitate benefits for eight of the surrounding villages set in 2200 hectares of land. Since the end of 2021, work has been on in full swing and completion of the project is expected in June 2022.
Situated in Anekal, Bangalore, the project includes seven primary objectives:
● Regulation of water runoff and mitigation against flooding
● Optimal capture of rainwater and ensuring above surface storage
● Support flora and fauna to access water and help their safer habitat
● Mitigate human-animal conflict by making water available for animals within their safer habitat and avoid them from wandering off
● Ensure groundwater recharge in the valley
● Enhancement of natural, indigenous vegetation and biodiversity
● Positive impact on the eco-system in Pearl Valley, where human, animal, and vegetative life can thrive
Launch of Oxygen Plants
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, oxygen has become one of the most precious commodities globally. Many a life has been lost due to the unexpectedness of the pandemic which led to a shortage of essential medical supplies. Even with a greater understanding of the virus and a certain level of preparedness, there is still a struggle across the world to treat affected patients.
The first two waves of the pandemic may have caught us off guard, but Continental made it a point to assist in preparedness for inevitable third wave. Two Oxygen generator plants have been installed at Victoria Hospital, Bangalore and the Saheed Hasan Khan Mewati (SHKM) Government Medical College, Mewat (in association with Maruti Suzuki India Limited) respectively.
While the Bangalore unit can produce 500 liters of oxygen per minute, the generator in Mewat has a capacity of 1 ton a day.
Apart from the oxygen generator plants that come as a boon for many suffering from the dreaded virus, Continental India has also been active in distributing PPE kits and other protective gear to healthcare workers, while our employees have lent their support as volunteers during these troubled times.
Trees Plantation Drive
Trees are valuable for carbon sequestration. Some research shows that a typical mature hardwood tree can absorb about 45 pounds of carbon dioxide annually. However, it takes years before a tree sequesters a significant amount of carbon, making forest conservation a vitally important exercise.
As Continental celebrated 150 years, we also kicked-off an initiative to plant 150,000 trees across India. One, among six global aid projects to receive funding from our 150th Anniversary special fund-raising campaign, this initiative focuses on improving biodiversity, afforestation in reclaimed forest land, and greening suburban areas.
Indigenous varieties of trees are being planted across Bangalore, Pune, Gurgaon, Kolkata, and Modipuram to ensure there is no negative impact on hydrology.
Having been inaugurated by veteran environmentalist and Padmashri awardee Saalumarada Thimmakka. Continental is working with multiple NGOs and local Govt departments to complete and then sustain the project for a period of two years.
The larger share of the project will follow the Miyawaki approach of tree planting, which allows for growing dense, native forests, with a faster sapling growth rate, and a resultant plantation that is several times denser than a regular plantation.
Avid participation from volunteers across the country has left us on the brink of hitting the desired figure, which is expected to be reached in the first quarter of 2022.
