India is one of the largest democracies in the world, having the age bracket of 5 to 24 years, presenting a large number of opportunities in the education space, however, bringing forward a high gap in demand and supply in the education sector. The government of India has been predominantly active in enhancing education initiatives in the nation, vouching to reach the remote locations in the country.

The quality of education provided to the students in government schools is below average, irrespective of high enrollment in schools in lieu of Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, Mid-day Meal, Mahila Samakhya etc. It is quite unfair to entirely blame the government for the loopholes in the education sector. Being a large entity, it requires support from the various stakeholders of the society, therein; the nation has seen a rise in support of the corporate sector, owing to the CSR mandate as well as well as fulfilling social responsibility towards the people, the CSR funds being extensively used to promote education initiatives, improve infrastructure, hygiene, and nutrition among children.

This article will highlight the best CSR initiatives by companies in the education sector and will give an overview of their programs showcasing their impacts garnered in the society.

1.  Tata Steel Limited

Name of the Project: Promotion of Education including Special Education

Location: Jharkhand and Orissa

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 57.81 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 52.22 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 85.62 Cr.

About the Project

The organization has distributed the budget into three sub-projects, each unique in its own accord.

2. Hero MotoCorp Limited

Name of the Project: Project Catch Them Young with Road Safety Clubs (RSC)

Location: PAN-India

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 48.11 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 48 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 82.6 Cr.

About the Project

With Road Safety Clubs (RSC) in over 1,150 schools, the Company has created a platform for constant engagement with children to sensitize them about road safety. Furthermore, to create influencers who can inspire their peers to be conscious and responsible citizens, it supports 2,200 Student Police Cadets (SPC), who propagate the road safety message and help in the overall personality development and leadership building exercises. The Company has a Mobile Safety Van, which supports road-safety awareness activities of the clubs as well as the SPCs.

3.  HDFC Bank Limited

Name of the Project: Learning made Fun; Promoting Education Initiatives

Location: PAN-India

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 40.96 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 41.29 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 365 Cr.

About the Project

Learning is as much a matter of the heart as it is of the mind. While our education system strives to impart the right knowledge to the young minds of our country, at times, the individual needs of some are ignored.

There is no better gift to humanity than education. Improving the quality of education is a focus area under Parivartan. The organization's efforts in the area of teacher’s training, scholarships and career guidance have helped in improving education standard at the community level. The flagship programs, 'Zero Investment Innovations for Education Initiatives, 'Teaching the Teacher' program, seeks to transform education in government schools across India. It is a unique program committed to improving the skills of teachers, benefitting pupils in turn.

4. Tech Mahindra Limited

Name of the Project: Mahindra Ecole Centrale (MEC)

Location: Telangana

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 21 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 36.16 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 71.55 Cr.

About the Project

The Mahindra Educational Institutions have been established as institutions of higher education, promoting research and development and collaborating with other renowned institutions to contribute towards the goal of high-quality technical education systems in India.

The Mahindra École Centrale (MEC) project provides high-quality technical education in engineering and computer technology for students. MEC is an international quality, technology school, which assures career progression for engineering aspirants. It is a multi-dimensional project focusing on personal development, multi-disciplinary knowledge, and critical-creative thinking.

5. ITC Limited

Name of the Project: The Primary Education Programme

Location: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana,  Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Assam, Odisha, Punjab, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Jammu & Kashmir.

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 20.44 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 48.99 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 290.47 Cr.

About the Project

The Primary Education Programme aims to provide children from weaker sections of society in the organization's factory catchment areas, access to education with a focus on learning outcomes and retention.

Operational in 22 districts of 12 States, the program covered 46,891 children during the year, thus taking the total coverage to nearly 5.60 lakh children. In addition, 162 government primary schools were provided infrastructure support comprising boundary walls, additional classrooms, sanitation units, and furniture, taking the total number of government primary schools covered till date to 1,644. To ensure sustainable operations and maintenance of the infrastructure provided, 351 School Management Committees were strengthened and 397 Child Cabinets and Water and Sanitation (WATSAN) Committees were formed in various schools with the active involvement of students and teachers.

6. Housing Development Finance Corporation Limited

Name of the Project: Capital & Operating expenditure for Educational Institutions

Location: Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Haryana, Maharashtra, New Delhi, Manipur

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 18.16 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 35.09 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 159.69 Cr.

About the Project

The organization supports and promotes education initiatives through its partner organizations, providing capital and operating expenditures to achieve scale and sustainability in the long term. The facilities are provided in the areas where educational opportunities are not easily available. They also address a gap in the current education system by introducing quality education for the middle and lower income group.

7. Bharti Airtel Limited

Name of the Project: Satya Bharti School Program

Location: Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, Telangana, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Goa

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 17.97 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 52.13 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 214.62 Cr.

About the Project

The Satya Bharti School Program is the flagship initiative of the Bharti Foundation. The rural education initiative provides quality education to underprivileged children, completely free of cost, with a special focus on the girl child. The program envisions transforming students into educated, confident, responsible and self-reliant employable citizens of India with a deep sense of commitment to their society. The program’s reach is multi-pronged, encouraging the active involvement of the rural community, parents of students and other organizations working in the field of education in India.

The Satya Bharti School Program is being implemented with the intent to arrive at replicable and scalable components of quality education which may be adopted by the Government and other like-minded organizations. Reaching out to thousands of underprivileged children, the program, through its focus on holistic development, aims to bring forth a new generation of citizens eager to usher in positive change.

8. Hindustan Zinc Limited

Name of the Project: Khushi Anganwadi Program

Location: Rajasthan

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 15.77 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 96.19 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 189.65 Cr.

About the Project

The program focuses on supporting the government in improving the functioning of the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) program in five districts of their operational area. The total coverage is 3,089 Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) directly reaching 64,000 children in age group 3-6 years. The program is implemented in partnership with strong civil society organisations in each of the five districts. It is probably the largest Public–Private–People initiative in the ICDS space. It aims to improve children's attendance, retention, learning levels, health status and community engagement.

9. Bharat Forge Limited

Name of the Project: Kalyani School

Location: Maharashtra

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 15 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 16.14 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 19.71 Cr.

About the Project

The Kalyani School, established with the objective of providing quality education, is promoted by Akutai Charitable Trust. The school provides a positive environment for students to achieve their potential and help impart a holistic environment to achieve excellence.

10. Tech Mahindra Limited

Name of the Project: School Education Program

Location: Delhi & NCR, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Orissa, Maharashtra

The total expenditure of the Project: INR 13.34 Cr.

Total amount outlay in Education: INR 36.16 Cr.

Total Prescribed CSR 2017-18: INR 71.55 Cr.

About the Project

The organization has classified its education initiatives into three programs, ARISE, ARISE+ and Shikshantar. The programs are extensively implemented by the Tech Mahindra Foundation.

Tech Mahindra Foundation’s educational initiatives under ARISE(All Round Improvement in School Education) are long-term school improvement programmes, in partnership with local governments and partner organisations. The Foundation has adopted 60+ schools across India and is working with 18 partners to turn them around completely into model schools of excellence.

ARISE+ initiatives encompass educational empowerment programmes for children with disabilities.

Shikshaantar envisioned as a programme for enhancing the capacity of government school teachers has taken rapid strides during the year.