TRANSMIT

HAPPINESS
P
ower Grid Corporation of India Ltd., a Navratna company,
is one of the largest electrical power transmission utilities
in the world. Being the Central Transmission Utility of
India, enshrined with the responsibility of inter-state transmission
of electricity, POWERGRID’s vision is to be a ‘world class,
integrated, global transmission company with dominant leadership
in emerging power markets ensuring reliability, safety and
economy.’ POWERGRID is committed to the goal of sustainable
development and the conservation of natural resources. While
continually improving its management systems, accessing
specialist knowledge and introducing state-of-the-art and
internationally proven technologies, POWERGRID follows the
principles of avoidance, minimisation and mitigation in dealing
with environmental and social issues. And wherever necessary,
restoration and enhancement.
 A People-To-People Grid
F or POWERGRID, CSR is generally understood as being the way through which
a company achieves a balance of economic, environmental and social imperatives
(triple-bottom-line- approach), while simultaneously addressing the needs of stakeholders
for the inclusive social-economic growth of society. The stakeholders, generally located
on the periphery of the commercial operations of the Company are directly impacted
by the operations of the Company. This is why CSR and sustainability activities are
given priority in the neighbourhood around POWERGRID’s areas of operations and
new projects. The pan-India presence of the Company is a big advantage when it comes
to serving the less privileged across the country.

Skill Development and Livelihood Generation: An acute need for skilled personnel
exists in transmission line erection. In response to the national priority of ‘Skill India’,
suitable participants are selected from the weaker sections of society where they are
given hands-on training in the field of transmission tower erection in eight of the
Company’s substations located in Assam, Manipur and West Bengal. This helps to
provide employment opportunities to youth in the transmission industry.

Vocational training for unemployed/under-employed youth and women is

conducted in a wide array of trades like tailoring, repairing and servicing automobiles,
weaving, food and fruit processing, repairing household electrical equipment and
domestic wiring. Participants are also trained to become customer service executives
and general duty assistants and in agriculture practices, civil construction areas, security,
house-keeping etc. at about 40 locations across the country. Improving rural livelihoods
through farmer-centric integrated watershed management is another major initiative
being taken in villages in Kurnool (Andhra Pradesh) and Vijayapura (Karnataka).
The objective is to increase agricultural productivity and improve rural livelihoods in
selected villages, on approximately 10,000 ha of land.

Education: In the financial year 2016, POWERGRID provided scholarships to 5481

students that were wards of armed force veterans or those rendered orphans/destitute
due to the death of the main bread winner of their family. Infrastructure development,
another activity under the CSR thrust area for marginalised sections of society, includes
constructing school classrooms, hostel blocks, computer labs, toilets etc. in addition to
POWERGRID distributed
providing desks, bookshelves, computers, sports items and so on.
solar lanterns to 10,000
school students in the
Healthcare: CSR initiatives include providing ambulances for different purposes, states of Bihar, Jharkhand
organising eye and general health camps, providing medical equipment to various PHC/ and Odisha, in areas where
CHC/government hospitals and undertaking the renovation of infrastructure facilities. electricity supply was poor

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Employees of POWERGRID, led by IS Jha,
CMD, have pledged to spend 57,000 man-
hours cleaning the surrounding areas
116 POWERGRID
Serving The Less Privileged
The Water Challenge: The Company is installing hand pumps, tube wells, constructing
overhead water tanks and laying pipelines in order to provide safe drinking water to the
population. Solar-powered pumps have been installed in places where there is unreliable
electricity supply and in unelectrified areas to maintain an uninterrupted supply of safe
drinking water. Water tankers have also been provided to villages in order to transport
potable drinking water.
Rural Development: Initiatives are being undertaken to build roads, community
centres, tube wells, bore wells, toilets, submersible pumps, culverts, water storage
facilities, sewage drains, and so on.
Ecology and Environmental Sustainability: POWERGRID’s activities are non-
polluting in nature and their environmental impacts are negligible. Despite this fact,
the Company has taken steps to further reduce the impact of its activities on the
environment such as technological initiatives for the conservation of the precious Right
of Way (RoW), rain water harvesting systems, installation of LED bulbs and solar street
lighting in substations, fuel catalyst devices for DG sets etc. All major buildings of
the Company are now being constructed as per green norms. A prime example is the
POWERGRID Regional Headquarter building in Bengaluru.
POWERGRID has also taken up the restoration of water bodies in various parts
of the country. A waste paper recycling plant is under operation on the premises of its
400/220 kV GIS substation in Gurgaon which has the recycling capacity of handling
40-60 kg of paper a day. Waste paper collected from POWERGRID’s corporate office
is used as raw material and is utilised to make the Company’s letterheads, visiting cards,
envelopes etc. The aim is to phase out the procurement of paper in due course of time.
Tree plantation is also a favourite area of activity in the Company. On 5 June
2016, about 5,000 plants were planted on World Environment Day. Large scale
plantations in Assam were taken up via the Eco-Task Force of the Indian Army, where
more than 1,00,000 saplings were planted. POWERGRID contributed to the ‘Clean
Ganga Fund’. It is also funding the setting up of a Continuous Air Quality Monitoring
Station in Faridabad, Haryana, through the Central Pollution Control Board.
Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan: Employees of POWERGRID, led by IS Jha, CMD have
pledged to spend 57,000 man-hours towards the cleanliness of the surrounding areas.
Under this initiative awareness about cleanliness is being spread. About 60,000 man-
hours have been dedicated by the employees towards this initiative so far n
POWERGRID 117
 POWERGRID provides
desks, bookshelves,
computers, sports items
and so on, to the students
from the marginalised
sections of society

CM, D Fadnavis dedicates six ambulances donated by POWERGRID to the citizens in Nagpur

Eye Witness
Focus on Education: A 40-room boys’ hostel has been constructed in the Ravi Shankar
Shukla University, Raipur with the entire furniture coming from the Central Jail. One
hundred and ten sets of furniture comprising beds, chairs, tables etc., for the existing
girls’ hostel in the university have also been supplied. POWERGRID distributed solar
lanterns to 10,000 school students in the states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha, in areas
where electricity supply was poor. A number of desks and benches were also provided
to various government schools across the country. A three-storeyed residential school is
underway in Rajnandgaon, Chattisgarh to help educate physically challenged children.

Other Facilities: A staggering number of about 9,425 toilets in 4,244 schools in 23

districts across seven states in the country were constructed under the Government of
India’s Swachh Vidyalaya Abhiyaan. POWERGRID supplied a mobile dental van to the
District Administration, Daman and Diu, to facilitate periodic check-ups and dental
care of school children.

Healthcare: On 15 May 2016, health check-up camps were conducted in more than
90 locations across the country, where more than 26,000 villagers benefitted. Free
medicines were also distributed. FY 2015-16 saw 2,000 persons with disabilities in nine
locations across the country being provided with aids and appliances to make them more
self-reliant. The Company is also funding the construction of a 10-storeyed, 325-bed
Dharamshala at AIIMS, Delhi, to mitigate the shortage of accommodation for patients.

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