CSR Practices by SMEs in India: Lessons from Five Case Studies

Though a large number of SMEs have been engaged in socially relevant activities which are beyond what could be considered as their immediate business pursuits, the debate on CSR as also the promotional instruments has remained somewhat skewed towards the large scale sector in India. Most of the SMEs being anchored in towns and villages or in the remote areas they have considerable adaptability to the local settings, exposure to local problems and also access to local resources. They, thus, are eminently suited to pursue CSR. This paper summarises the major findings of five case studies on the best CSR practices by Indian SMEs prepared by a team of researchers from Shri Ram Centre for Industrial Relations & Human Resources, New Delhi.