Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Scheme

About

However, we understand that as a company you have earned reputation and wealth only after pouring all your resources and foregoing all the pleasures. Your enterprise is an embodiment of your dream and vision.

ACIC IIT (ISM) Foundation, an incubation centre, is funded by IIT (ISM) Dhanbad and Niti Aayog, Government of India. The Foundation aims to create opportunities for enterprises and start-ups bringing innovative solutions that solve a community problem. The Foundation addresses several economically weaker sections of our society that includes women, persons with disabilities, tribal communities and others who lack formal resources to earn livelihood.

We offer diverse services to promote entrepreneurship and create start-ups:

    1. Business incubation: To help start-ups develop their business. And facilitate access to capital, facilities, laboratory, equipment, services, mentorship, consultancy and interns.

    2. Entrepreneurship promotion: To promote entrepreneurship by offering training programs including workshops, seminars and capacity building programs for technology and business development.

Activities that can be undertaken by ACIC
The foundation can collaborate with companies as CSR partner to fund several activities in the area of business incubation, entrepreneurship and community development. The companies can select following domains that suits their mandate:

    1. Seed Funding: Any start-up requires funding and they are not eligible to get funding from convention sources including banks. Hence, we need to offer a hassle-free capital to the incubated companies to help them sustain their business operations.

    2. Entrepreneurship and Skill development Programs: Entrepreneurship is not an easy task and we have to spur the entrepreneurial spirit by organizing various programs that would add value in the entrepreneurial skill-set. These programs may be diverse as the entrepreneurship itself and shall range in generic technology and business development to specific domain or industry based.

The foundation has identified several domains that shall create start-up opportunity for entrepreneurs

Since CSR is not the main objective of the companies hence, it will help if we suggest various verticals to the prospective CSR partner so that they may take an informed decision. A lot of iterations can be reduced when we propose a crystallized proposal.

    1. Agro processing, medicinal and aromatic plant-based products- The area is blessed with unexplored flora that has immense commercial value. Hence, a scientific analysis to validate the claims and also create value added products in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, including traditional medicine can be explored. The expertise shall be sourced internally as well as external organizations like NBRI and CIMAP.

    2. Entrepreneurship and Skill development Programs: Entrepreneurship is not an easy task and we have to spur the entrepreneurial spirit by organizing various programs that would add value in the entrepreneurial skill-set. These programs may be diverse as the entrepreneurship itself and shall range in generic technology and business development to specific domain or industry based.

    3. Handicrafts & Local artisans-. The state has rich tradition of artisans like Lac based products, sericulture, blacksmith, lac cultivation, carpentry, etc. ACIC shall identify the problems in the area in consultations with the master craftsmen to develop innovations in the area that augments the overall productivity.

    4. Medical & Healthcare Innovations- affordable healthcare has become a need. The community needs superior healthcare technology that uses the latest state of the art tool including ML/AI to give globally accessible and affordable healthcare services. ACIC shall coordinate and collaborate with local resources available with diverse organizations like AIIMS, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) Hazaribagh and offer complete solutions to the entrepreneurs and create best healthcare products. NIPER Hazaribagh is a designated nodal centre for Medical Device Adverse Event Monitoring Centre by Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission. So, they have unique data and insights in functioning of medical device that could be useful for such start-ups. Second- they also have research (Ph.D.) programs including unique pharmaceutical analysis. Some interesting areas of research are- over/under drug utilization, incorrect duration/dosage therapeutic duplication, drug-disease interactions. They also work on business model innovations like minimizing artificial shortage and patient counselling.

    5. Products/Aids for Persons with Disabilities- worldwide data says that around 10-15% of population in any country suffers with some kind of disability. The disability directs affects the employment opportunities and drastically impacts the life of an individual. The technology like 3D printing and ICT can be used to develop and deploy such aids that are useful for persons with disabilities. ACIC shall incubate development of lower/upper limb prosthetics and the facilitate research, development and deployment of such products. In addition, we shall collaborate with AIIMS to open new opportunities for entrepreneurs in the area of hearing impairment, blindness, locomotor & intellectual/learning disability.

    6. ICT for Development- development of mobile applications can be very useful for community areas including agriculture, healthcare and education. Mobile apps are universal in nature and no start-up can sustain by ignoring this area.

    7. Electro-mechanical machines, devices and equipment- development of electro-mechanical devices machines are very important area that has tremendous opportunities for start-ups in the region. There are several distinctive regional opportunities like muri making, makhana popping, pottery, rope making, sattu making etc. The research expertise of IIT (ISM) can help develop new and improved machinery.

What ACIC will do?

ACIC shall facilitate innovative start-ups and livelihood generating MSMEs. We shall train the entrepreneurs so that they can run a profitable enterprise. We shall help them in company formation and pool the critical resources, services and facilities required for any enterprise. The services and resources offered under CSR collaboration shall include- seed funding (to purchase equipment, components, salary, utilities), technology mentorship & business development. However, we shall monitor to ensure that the funds are properly utilized and the company achieves the milestone and remains profitable.

What ACIC will not do?

Since commercial activities attract strict legal compliances and resulting obligations and liabilities. We shall facilitate but never get involved in the business operations of any company. The agreement with the company clearly indicates the intentions. All the liability shall lie with the company.

Process

Once the proposal is shared, the CSR partner can either select from the list and indicate their preferences. They can also indicate the mode of assistance- either funding to beneficiary or help organize events. They shall have an option of sharing their vision as per their mandate, thereupon ACIC shall take approval from the BoD and given the consent. Once the parties agree on the proposal and its deliverable, ACIC shall pool the required resources and start the project. The money shall be credited to the ACIC’s bank account, receipt shall be issued to the company. ACIC shall in addition to the normal account maintenance, also create a separate account so that proper utilization certificate may be issued to the CSR partner. The normal rules and checks including audit and maintaining invoices shall be done as per the ACIC’s manual.


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