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AUDIT COMMITTEE

Lakeshore Hospital & Research Centre Ltd.
Corporate Social Responsibility Policy
Effective Date 01/04/2014
Initiated by Company Secretary
Recommended by CSR committee of Board of Directors
Approved by Meeting of the Board of Directors held on 29/12/2014
Policy Contents 5 Pages

Background

Lakeshore Hospital & Research Centre Ltd., (hereinafter described as the Company) is a super specialty tertiary level hospital delivering state-of-the-art medical care over the last twelve years. The hospital has gained reputation locally, nationally and internationally. The company has been instrumental in bringing the latest technology to the country whereby creating access to the best possible treatment at an affordable cost. For those persons who could not afford the cost and deserve, the hospital has been providing treatment at a subsidised rate. Apart from philanthropic activities and medical management within the hospital, it has been associating with several NGOs in conducting medical camps, health awareness classes, school health programs etc. in the community where specialist doctors also participate.

World Health Organization defines health as state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Upholding this definition for health, the company believes that healthcare should not be seen synonymous to treatment of diseases alone while health promotion and disease prevention should be given adequate stress. Towards this, the company recognizes the relevance of considering the social determinants of health as a step towards health of a population. According to WHO, the social determinants of health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. These circumstances are shaped by the distribution of money, power and resources at global, national and local levels. The 66th World Health Assembly of WHO held in May 2013 ascertained that the social determinants need to be recognized and tackled as a fundamental approach.

To carry out our philanthropic activities systematically and to deliver care to the public, a policy on Corporate Social Responsibility (hereinafter described as the Policy) has been prepared in line with the requirements of the Companies Act, 2013 (hereinafter described as the Act).

Compliance to Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013

Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013 (hereinafter described as Section 135) and the Companies (Corporate Social Responsibility Policy) Rules, 2014 (hereinafter described as the rules) has been considered and the guidelines laid by these Act and Rules will be followed by the company while developing their CSR programme.

CSR Committee

The Board of Directors at their meeting held on May 23, 2014 for the first time constituted a CSR committee consisting of following members.

  • Mr A Janardhana Pai, Chairman
  • Dr K V Johny
  • Mr. Venkiteswara Prabhu

The committee was entrusted the following tasks

  • Formulate and recommend to the Board, a Corporate Social Responsibility Policy (CSR Policy)
  • Indicate the activities to be undertaken by the company as specified in Schedule VII of the act.
  • Monitor the Corporate Social Responsibility Policy of the company from time to time.
  • Recommend the amount of expenditure to be incurred on the activities referred to.

The CSR Policy Statement

The CSR policy of the company reflects its commitment to humanity more than the statutory requirements. Policies and programs of the company are structured over the four pillars Ethics, community, environment and diversity. Our policies explicitly express our desire to give back to our communities while the company prospers. Being ethical is the main pillar where we act with integrity and adhere to codes of ethics and cultural values. We strive hard to deliver the best to the community in which we exist, operating our business which is environmentally efficient, actively protecting the environment and respecting the diversity of the population by being non-discriminative based on caste, creed, gender, thought and experience.

Areas of activities and intervention

The Company shall be undertaking activities in the following broad areas. Specific programs and projects under these areas shall be proposed and implemented in each financial year.

  • Eradication of hunger and malnutrition
  • Health promotion
  • Supporting Government initiatives in healthcare especially in preventive health, maternal and child health and care of older persons.
  • Sanitation
  • Availability of safe drinking water
  • Campaign against use of alcohol, smoking, drug abuse etc.
  • Promoting education including special education and employment enhancing vocation skills especially among children, women, elderly and the differently abled and livelihood enhancement
  • Rural Development
  • Promoting gender equality and empowering women
  • Setting up daycare centers homes and hostels for women, senior citizens and marginalized communities.
  • Ensuring environmental sustainability, ecological balance, protection of flora and fauna, animal welfare, agro forestry, conversation of natural resources and maintaining quality of soil, air and water.
  • Protection of national heritage, art and culture.
  • Measures for the benefit of armed forces veterans, war widows and their dependents
  • Training to promote rural sports, nationally recognized sports, paralympic sports and Olympic sports.
  • Contribution to the Prime Ministers National Relief Fund or any other fund set up by the Central Government for socio-economic development and relief and welfare of the Schedules Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, other backward classes, minorities and women.
  • Contributions or funds provided to technology incubators located within academic institutions which are approved by the Central Government.

Rationale for proposing a project

The CSR committee shall conduct an assessment of the major community needs from time to time to understand the felt-needs of the community. Proposed projects shall be prioritized mainly based on these assessments and funds be earmarked appropriately.

Transparency

Monitoring and evaluation of the programs/projects and expenditure shall be conducted by the CSR Committee on a quarterly basis and report to the Board of Directors on half yearly basis. An annual report on CSR activities with necessary details shall be included in the Directors Report of the Company in the prescribed format.

This policy approved by the Board of Directors of the Company shall be placed in the website of the Company.

Target population

While the intention of the company is to serve the entire community, to have a structure and focus for the programs that are developed, certain population may be targeted such as children, women and older persons.

Audit of CSR Expenditure

The CSR expenditure will be audited on quarterly basis by the Internal Auditors and by the Statutory Auditors on yearly basis to confirm that the money spent are for the CSR projects/ programs or activities approved by the Board of Directors of the company and are in conformity with the act, and the rules thereof.

Location

The Company shall give preference to the local area where our hospital is located. However, this territory shall not be limited by the political boundaries alone while it will be restricted to the geographical boundaries of India.

Validity and authority for modification / amendments

This CSR Policy approved by the Board of the Company shall be effective from April 01, 2014 and will be in force till such time it is modified or amended by the Board of Directors on recommendation of the CSR Committee.

Associations

The company shall have its own strategy for designing projects / programs, implementation and evaluation using its own available resources. However, the company shall form appropriate associations with other NGOs or enter into a private-public partnership with Government bodies to reach out to the beneficiaries efficiently.

The CSR Budget

The CSR committee shall recommend programs / projects or activities that could be taken up in each financial year and the amount that has to be spent which will be approved by the Board of Directors with or without modification. If the company could not spend the budgeted amount for any reason, the un-utilized amount shall be carried forward to the next financial year and added to the budget of that year.