Exploring barriers to corporate social responsibility policy and practices in India: an empirical analysis

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies and practices in India have been gaining attention across corporations with the introduction of the legal mandate of CSR through Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013. This mandatory CSR guideline made corporations more accountable and responsible towards society through engagement in various social and community development programs. However, the sustainability of these CSR programs has been challenged by various barriers, from planning to the successful implementation of projects. In this context, the present study explores corporate houses' barriers to successfully planning and implementing community-level CSR projects. The study used qualitative and stakeholder engagement approaches followed by exploratory and descriptive research design methods to collect and analyze the data from CSR officials and beneficiaries of two corporations (HAL and NALCO) in Odisha. The findings have established that barriers to corporations' CSR projects can be categorized under internal and external factors. Based on the findings, the study proposes policy implications for corporations, government, and other stakeholders to eradicate and minimize such barriers for better implementation and sustainability of CSR projects.