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Mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility: The Indian experience

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  • Mukherjee, Abhishek
  • Bird, Ron
  • Duppati, Geeta

Abstract

The question we raise is what to do when companies fail to keep pace with societal expectations with respect to their corporate social responsibility (CSR). The response of the Indian government was to make it mandatory for large corporations to spend funds on CSR activities. In this paper, we investigate the success of this legislation both for the companies and the intended beneficiaries. We find that the impact of the legislation has fallen short of expectations both in terms of the volume of CSR expenditure generated and the activities to which it has been directed. In particular, we find that the legislation has had a negative corporate profitability which can impact on the willingness of companies to spend in this area. We conclude that greater care must be taken when implementing mandatory CSR if it is to be effective.

Suggested Citation

  • Mukherjee, Abhishek & Bird, Ron & Duppati, Geeta, 2018. "Mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility: The Indian experience," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 14(3), pages 254-265.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jocaae:v:14:y:2018:i:3:p:254-265
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jcae.2018.06.002
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    Cited by:

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    2. Prasad, Krishna & Kumar, Satish & Devji, Shridev & Lim, Weng Marc & Prabhu, Nandan & Moodbidri, Sudhir, 2022. "Corporate social responsibility and cost of capital: The moderating role of policy intervention," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    3. Anna Jessop & Nicole Wilson & Michal Bardecki & Cory Searcy, 2019. "Corporate Environmental Disclosure in India: An Analysis of Multinational and Domestic Agrochemical Corporations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(18), pages 1-33, September.
    4. Manfred Max Bergman & Zinette Bergman & Yael Teschemacher & Bimal Arora & Divya Jyoti & Rijit Sengupta, 2019. "Corporate Responsibility in India: Academic Perspectives on the Companies Act 2013," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-20, October.
    5. Akshita Arora, 2023. "Enforcement and Compliance: The Case of Mandated CSR Provisions in an Emerging Economy," Management and Labour Studies, XLRI Jamshedpur, School of Business Management & Human Resources, vol. 48(1), pages 64-75, February.
    6. Shankar Shaw, Tara & Raithatha, Mehul & Krishnan, Gopal V. & Cordeiro, James J., 2021. "Did mandatory CSR compliance impact accounting Conservatism? Evidence from the Indian Companies Act 2013," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(3).
    7. Iram Hasan & Shveta Singh & Smita Kashiramka, 2022. "Does corporate social responsibility disclosure impact firm performance? An industry-wise analysis of Indian firms," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(8), pages 10141-10181, August.
    8. Popkova, Elena & DeLo, Piper & Sergi, Bruno S., 2021. "Corporate Social Responsibility Amid Social Distancing During the COVID-19 Crisis: BRICS vs. OECD Countries," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 55(C).
    9. GUPTA Pradeep Kumar & GARG Arunesh, 2022. "Impact Of Csr Expenditure Compliance On Firm Value Using P/B-Roe Valuation Model And Instrumental Approach," Studies in Business and Economics, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 17(2), pages 108-123, August.
    10. Aruna Jha & Vijita Singh Aggrawal, 2019. "Institutional pressures for corporate social responsibility implementation: a study of Indian executives," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 16(4), pages 555-577, June.
    11. Bhattacharyya, Asit & Rahman, Md Lutfur, 2019. "Mandatory CSR expenditure and firm performance," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(3).
    12. Mingyuan Guo & Yanfang Hu & Yu Zhang & Fuge Tian, 2019. "State-Owned Shareholding and CSR: Do Multiple Financing Methods Matter?—Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-15, March.
    13. Manish Bansal, 2022. "Impact of mandatory CSR spending on strategic brand‐building levers: Evidence from a quasi‐natural experiment in India," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 43(8), pages 3620-3633, December.
    14. Asit Bhattacharyya & Sue Wright & Md Lutfur Rahman, 2021. "Is better banking performance associated with financial inclusion and mandated CSR expenditure in a developing country?," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 61(1), pages 125-161, March.
    15. Hickman, L. Emily & Iyer, Subramanian Rama & Jadiyappa, Nemiraja, 2021. "The effect of voluntary and mandatory corporate social responsibility on earnings management: Evidence from India and the 2% rule," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(C).
    16. Ved Dilip Beloskar & S. V. D. Nageswara Rao, 2022. "Corporate Social Responsibility: Is Too Much Bad?—Evidence from India," Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, Springer;Japanese Association of Financial Economics and Engineering, vol. 29(2), pages 221-252, June.
    17. Sudershan Kuntluru, 2019. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance: Indian Evidence," Working papers 317, Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode.
    18. Ved Dilip Beloskar & S. V. D. Nageswara Rao, 2023. "Did ESG Save the Day? Evidence From India During the COVID-19 Crisis," Asia-Pacific Financial Markets, Springer;Japanese Association of Financial Economics and Engineering, vol. 30(1), pages 73-107, March.
    19. Monika Kansal & Nava Subramaniam & Shekar Babu & Suresh Mony, 2020. "CSR in Government-Owned Enterprises in India: A Principal–Agent Perspective," CSR, Sustainability, Ethics & Governance, in: Bodo B. Schlegelmilch & Ilona Szőcs (ed.), Rethinking Business Responsibility in a Global Context, pages 219-236, Springer.
    20. Sudershan Kuntluru, 2019. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance: Indian Evidence," Working papers 332, Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR); Mandatory; Indian legislation; Corporate response; Impact on profitability;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G38 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • M14 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - Corporate Culture; Diversity; Social Responsibility

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