CSR Funds: Empowering Impact Innovation

Date and Time:

Thursday, March 07, 2024, 02:30 PM - 05:00 PM (IST)

Venue:

7th floor, SINE IIT Bombay,
RBTIC Building, opposite VMCC,
IIT Bombay Campus, Powai,
Mumbai - 400076

MODE OF JOINING:

IN PERSON

 

Introduction:

We are pleased to extend an exclusive invitation to you for a special event, jointly presented by Nishith Desai Associates and Startup India. As you may be aware, Nishith Desai Associates is leading its efforts towards CSR initiatives to provide opportunities for start-ups to differentiate themselves in a competitive market and attract socially conscious consumers, to foster long-term success and impact.

Startup India, a flagship initiative of Government of India, has been focusing on building a conducive start-up ecosystem since its launch in January 2016. As part of this initiative, the focus now is on strengthening the participation of domestic capital in start-ups, institutional investors and corporates with underused capital that may help increase the flow of domestic capital into the start-up ecosystem. A key pillar of the same is sensitizing corporate players on the importance CSR funds for supporting incubators and innovators. We believe you can derive high value from it.

Start-ups drive the entrepreneurial growth of the nation by bringing advancements with cutting edge technology and solving problems through innovation. Raising funding is one of the most crucial steps in turning an idea into reality. As most investors fund start-ups with high potential of return on investments, ideas which are capital and R&D intensive with high gestation period in fields of social impact, rural development, medicine and life sciences, engineering, defence and space technology, clean technology, renewable energy often face difficulty while raising funds. It is, therefore, most essential to fund innovation in social, environmental, and R&D fields creating significant impact for the nation by successfully unlocking funds available under CSR for driving impact innovation.

To drive this engagement, Startup India along with Nishith Desai Associates is taking the initiative to bring the key stakeholders together on utilisation of CSR fund for Incubators and Start-ups by presenting successful case studies and bringing in industry/legal experts to discuss CSR regulatory framework. This would be followed by a discussion on the Impact Innovation Platform that aims to ease the process by building a centralised platform that would match corporates, incubators, and high-impact start-ups on a single platform to boost social, environmental, and technological innovation for solving national and societal issues.

 

Flow of the session

02:30 PM to 02:35 PM (IST)

Opening Remarks

02:35 PM to 02:45 PM (IST)

Introduction

02:45 PM to 03:05 PM (IST)

Legal Understanding on CSR Laws + Q&A

03:05 PM to 03:25 PM (IST)

Case Study Presentation by Incubator (who has received CSR Funding) + Q&A

03:25 PM to 03:45 PM (IST)

Case Study Presentation by Corporate (who has collaborated with Incubators) + Q&A

03:45 PM to 04:00 PM (IST)

Discussion on CSR Impact Innovation Platform Proposal

04:00 PM to 04:15 PM (IST)

Open Discussion

04:15 PM to 04:20 PM (IST)

Closing Remarks

04:20 PM to 05:00 PM (IST)

High tea

Speakers

Rahul Rishi

Nishith Desai Associates

 

Maulin Salvi

Nishith Desai Associates

 

 

Supporting Partner