India has quietly created one of the world’s largest pools of private sector-led development finance through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) law. What began as corporate compliance legislation in 2014, where companies crossing any of the three thresholds — Rs 500 crore in net worth, Rs 1,000 crore in turnover or Rs 5 crore in net profit — are mandated to spend 2 per cent of their net profits on CSR, has mobilised Rs 2.6 lakh crore in 10 years.

Recent reports indicate the annual CSR spend of Rs 40,794 cr in 2024-25, contributed by 29,500 companies supporting 72,000 projects. This is perhaps the world’s largest example of mandatory private-sector contribution.

India Inc. deserves credit. This is no longer charity at the margins of corporate balance sheets. It is a significant source of crucial development capital. The success of the CSR experiment in mobilising money must now evolve to maximising impact across the country and sectors.

The latest numbers show why: Maharashtra received Rs 8,631........

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