From corporate ‘social responsibility’ to ‘legal responsibility’ – a comparative study

Clause 135, Company’s Act 2013 changed the level playing field for organizations engaged in CSR Activities. No more the sheer amount of capital invested by the Big Businesses will act as a benchmark, instead it is the 2% net profit earned from the average of three previous years which will be considered for comparison. Where big players are finding difficult to plan and execute their majestic projects to meet the benchmark, small players faces the lack of necessary resources and instable profit margin to execute theirs. In this article, an attempt is made to compare the CSR Reports (2013-14, 2014-15 & 2015-16) of top five and bottom five organizations in terms of net profit earned in financial year 2014-15 using deductive thematic analysis. The results from 30 CSR Annual Reports thus analysed, identified the shift in thematic frameworks of CSR initiative in India (specific to said act) and thereby providing constructive feedback to further enhance the provisions pertaining to CSR which suits both the big players and those who just qualify at the margin. The approach and activities undertaken by both the big and small players in the field to meet the expectations of the Company’s Act 2013 is also discussed.