Govt may soften the blow on Corporate India for CSR non-compliance
Even before the ink could dry on the amendments to the Companies Act 2013 treating CSR non-compliance as a criminal offence, the government is likely to go in for a change in position on this count.
The High level committee on CSR — appointed in September 2018 — recommendation of doing away with the penal provision of imprisonment for non-compliance may find favour with the government. The Committee report was submitted to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman here on Tuesday.
While Corporate India is thrilled about this recommendation, many economy watchers wonder whether the government did a rush job in going in for legal amendments in July 2019 to declare stiff penalties and jail term for CSR non-compliance.
Having appointed a High Level committee under the chairmanship of Corporate Affairs Secretary, the government could have done well to wait for the final report to be submitted, they said.
Some critics even see it as a government’s faux pas in handling a delicate subject like CSR. So was the current Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who assumed office this May, not fully briefed about the existence of a high-level committee and the work in progress? they asked.
Source: The Hindu BusinessLine
