Every corporate is responsible
for some social or environmental cause.
The term Corporate Social
Responsibility or CSR, as it is commonly known as, has been derived from the
Vedas.
We all are aware of the
commonly spoken maxim “Neki kar dariya me daal”. This means do your karma,
forget about results. Do good and expect nothing. This is called “Nishkam
Karma”.
It is now mandatory for all
companies above a given defined size to spend 2% of their net profits of the
last three financial years to charity (CSR activities) under Section 135 of the
Indian Companies
Act.
In Islam, all Muslims who meet
the necessary criteria of wealth are required to give 2.5% of their total wealth
to the needy as ‘Zakat’. Sikhism also requires Sikhs to donate one-tenth of
their earnings as "Daan" towards the common resources of the
community.
The Gandhian principle of
“Sarvodaya” or welfare of all advocates that the aim in life therefore should
be to work not for oneself but for the welfare of the others. The basic
fundamental teaching of the Vedic science is also based on sarvodaya. It talks about “bahujan hitay-bahujan sukhay” i.e. “the good of the masses, the benefit of the
masses”.
“Vasudhaiva kutumbakam” i.e.
the whole world is one family is derived from the Rig Veda and forms one of the
fundamentals of Vedic philosophy.
It has been an IMA
Policy that doctors should give 10% of their time to charity in the
form of free OPDs or camps. Real charity is 100% free, but when corporates entered, this changed to
“camps with conversion”. Charity has to be unconditional. Consultation alone
should not be free. The entire treatment should be free and it should be
transparent. Even the MCI Code of Ethics Regulations has said, “The prime
object of the medical profession is to render service to humanity; reward or
financial gain is a subordinate consideration (1.1.2).”
A Devta is someone who gives
and shares. Anybody who gives can be said to be a devta. Doctors can be likened
to devtas, as they help the patient to heal.
All doctors do CSR. Every
doctor is a “Trust” as he is a trustee of his patient.
This is why the medical
profession is called a noble profession.
Dr KK Aggarwal
Padma Shri Awardee
President
Elect Confederation of Medical Associations in
Asia and Oceania (CMAAO)
Group Editor-in-Chief IJCP Publications
President Heart Care Foundation of India
Immediate Past National President IMA
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