Business and Society - A Millennium Challenge Seminar at BITS Pilani Rajasthan

Considering the importance of CSR in current context, Birla Institute of Technology and Science – BITS Pilani Rajasthan which is one among the top ranking universities in India today organized a Seminar during 7-8 November 2008 on “Dynamics of Transformative Cooperation in Business and Society: A Millennium Challenge”.

The Seminar was inaugurated on Friday 07 November 2008 by Prof LK Maheshwari, Vice Chancellor BITS Pilani and the key note address was delivered by Shri M Ramadoss Chairman and Managing Director Oriental Insurance. A book on CSR written by Guest of Honor Dr SK Panda Principal Secretary Higher Education, Govt of Tripura was also released. The Seminar had 5 sessions apart from paper presentations.

The theme for Session-I was CSR as a Good Business Model and the key note address for same was delivered by Dr Vikas Goswami Lead CRS Microsoft India New Delhi. The panelists for this session included Proud to be BITSian Prof Harsh Bhargava from IBS Hyderabad, Dr Sandeep Pandey Ramon Magsaysay Award winner and Prof Sudheer Thaakur from BITS Pilani. The panel discussion for this session was moderated by Proud to be BITSian Prof Arjun Badlani Adviser Darshan Education Foundation, New Delhi.

The theme for Session-II was Social Initiatives as promoted by the Corporates and the key note address for same was delivered by Proud to be BITSian Mathew Cherian CEO Helpage India. Mathew Cherian had no hesitation in stating that he owed whatever he is today to the broad based and interdisciplinary education which allowed him to do electives such as Comparative Religion and attend lectures by Swami Chinmayananda during his student days at Pilani. The panelists for this session included Shri VS Ramana, Head Corporate Communications L&T – ECC Chennai, Prof KBL Srivastava IIT Kharagpur, Proud to be BITSian and renowned corporate consultant Mr Ashok Balwani from Mumbai and Prof Anil Bhat from BITS Pilani.

The theme for Session-III was Global Warming and Climate Change and the key note address for same was delivered by Shri Rajendra Singh, Ramon Magsaysay award winner. The panelists for this session included Prof Chanda Chakraborty IIT Kharagpur, Dr VK Vidyarthi NABARD Jaipur, Prof Rajiv Gupta and Prof Arya Kumar from BITS Pilani The panel discussion for this session was moderated by Dr RP Pareek Medical Superintendent BITS Pilani.

The theme for Session-IV was UN Global Compact – A CSR Initiative and the key note address for same was delivered by Ms Nicola Swan, Visiting Professor, Henley Management College London UK. The panelists for this session included Proud to be BITSian RK Anil UNDP New Delhi, Prof Irfan Khan Taleem Research Foundation Ahmedabad, Dr Aniruddha Dey Kolkata, Dr Nirupama Prakash from BITS Pilani and Dr Jharana Mishra from Bhubaneswar. The panel discussion for this session was moderated by Dr BR Natarajan from BITS Pilani.

The theme for Session- V was Education, Innovation and Business and the key note address for same was delivered by Dr SK Panda guest of honor for the seminar. The panelists for this session included Prof Sudhanshu Bhushan NUEPA New Delhi, Prof Arjun Badlani, Ms Malini Thadani Head Corporate Sustainability HSBC Mumbai, Proud to be BITSian Dr Dinesh Abrol from NISTADS, Prof Ravi Prakash and Prof Suman Kapoor from BITS Pilani. This session was moderated by Shri VS Ramana from L&T ECC Chennai.

The seminar sponsors included Planning Commission, Canara Bank, Aircel, NABARD, NTPC, SAIL, OWSA, CSIR, UGC and Bharat Petroleum. The seminar was enthusiastically attended and participated by a large number of faculty members and students of BITS Pilani. The seminar concluded with the valedictory address by Prof RK Mittal and Prof AK Sarkar from BITS Pilani.

Presently everyone is bothered about the Global Financial Crisis and it is in fact the right time for all stake holders to realize that a commitment to corporate sustainability is as important perhaps even more important in tough economic times as in robust times. In fact, Investments in sustainability made during this time of global economic downturn will arguably serve to create competitive advantages when markets begin to recover. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not charity or philanthropy or publicity but investment into safe secure future. According to the Secretary General of the United Nations (UN) Ban Ki-moon “We need business to give practical meaning and reach to the values and principles that connect cultures and people everywhere. “

BITS Pilani Rajasthan which has the reputation of pioneering the online examinations for admissions through the path breaking BITSAT and setting a bench mark in industry university collaborations is one among the top ranking universities towering above the rest in various best college surveys in India today. BITS offers degrees in various disciplines presently at Pilani, Dubai, Goa and Hyderabad campuses apart from an array of work integrated learning programmes for HRD of a vast spectrum of Indian corporates. The alumni of the Institute who are Proud to be BITSians peaking with Passion Quotient for Alma mater and spread across the globe from Australia to America are the true ambassadors of Brand BITS Pilani.

Dr BR Natarajan
Vice President BITS Alumni Association (BITSAA)
Professor, BITS Pilani Rajasthan 333031 India
Phone 91-1596-242210
Fax 91-1596-244183
Email: brnt@bits-pilani.ac.in
http://www.bits-pilani.ac.in

This release was published on openPR.