A Study of CSR Practices and Environmental Sustainability Initiatives of Major Industries in Rajasthan

Rajasthan has some of India’s biggest mining, oil and gas, cement, and textile industries, each having to adhere to the mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) guidelines stipulated in section 135 of the Companies Act of 2013. This study looks at the four leading companies in the industries mentioned above—Hindustan Zinc Limited (Mining), Cairn Oil & Gas/Vedanta Limited (Oil & Gas), Shree Cement Limited (Cement), and RSWM Limited of the LNJ Bhilwara Group (Textile)—in terms of CSR expenditure and environmental sustainability practices. Using the sustainability reports and CSR reports of these companies in addition to literature on the topic, it is observed that the amount spent on CSR varies greatly among the different industries and even within an industry: Hindustan Zinc Ltd reports an expenditure of ₹273.45 crore in FY2024-25 while Shree Cement Ltd spends ₹51.34 crore on CSR in FY2023-24, while Cairn Oil & Gas’s multistate CSR expenditure decreased from ₹25.53 crore in FY2021-22 to ₹10.26 crore in FY2024-25. Similar variations have been seen in environmental initiatives: Sewage treatment and land restoration by Hindustan Zinc, Water positivity and renewable energy by Shree Cement and water conservation by RSWM through its Zero Liquid Discharge project.