Livelihoods and Community Engagement

2nd August 2024: Project AMBER Report “Empowering Lives: Embracing Collaboration” was released at the AMBER Summit by Shri Atul Kumar Tiwari, Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India. This report highlights the project’s advancements in skills training and job placements, offering insights and best practices to guide future skills development initiatives in India. Project AMBER (Accelerated Mission for Better Employment and Retention) is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), and Generation India Foundation under Skill Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP), a World Bank-funded MSDE program. Supported by leading CSR entities in India, including JPMorgan Chase, Project AMBER is a unique public-private partnership in

16th July 2024: As a significant part of the company’s CSR intervention, Tata Chemicals Community Development arm, Tata Chemicals Society of Rural Development (TCSRD), in partnership with the NGO “Light of Life Trust” (LOLT) established a Livelihood and Skill Training Center in Mulshi, Pune today. This center is set to benefit around 430 individuals from 10 villages around the Tata Chemicals Innovation Center during the fiscal year 2024-25. In a bid to provide livelihood and skill development, the center will not only provide training but also assist the trained individuals in securing employment or facilitating the establishment of their entrepreneurial venture. Through this comprehensive skill center introduced in Mulshi by TCSRD and LOLT, a range of short-term training courses, including

15th July 2024: AgriWings, a leader in precision agricultural drone spraying services, is making strides to revolutionize the agricultural landscape through its Village Level Entrepreneur (VLE) channel. This initiative aims to empower rural youth, providing them with the tools, training, and support necessary to succeed as entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector. AgriWings is dedicated to equipping VLEs with the knowledge and skills required to thrive. The training encompasses various aspects of agricultural entrepreneurship, focusing on quality management and adherence to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). By ensuring proper SOPs, AgriWings guarantees that VLEs maintain high standards in their operations, fostering trust and reliability. Recognizing the financial hurdles faced by many aspiring entrepreneurs, AgriWings offers comprehensive loan processing assistance. This support makes

26th June 2024: In response to India’s critical skills gap, the Magic Bus India Foundation has played a pivotal role in training and empowering young people with life and employability skills. Through its Adolescent Programme, the organization has empowered 15 lakh adolescents in 2023-24, equipping them with life skills to achieve school, life, and work outcomes. In the same year, the Livelihood Programme, which is aligned with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and National Occupational Standards (NOS) framework enrolled over 1.25 lakh youth and placed over 80% in sustainable jobs providing them with transferable life and employability skills.  Over the last 25 years, Magic Bus has empowered the lives of nearly 34 lakh young people.  It has its eyes set

18 June 2024: In the heart of Maharashtra’s tribal interiors, Tata Motors has embarked on a transformative mission—the One Million Plantation initiative. This ambitious project aims to sow saplings of hope for local communities in the Palghar district. To date, 1.5 million fruit and forest saplings have taken root, covering 13,000 acres across eight blocks and breathing life into once-barren land. As part of the Integrated Village Development Programme (IVDP), Tata Motors’ initiative not only curbs distress migration but also generates income for local communities by providing sustainable income, leveraging the MNREGs scheme for sapling aftercare, and later through produce sales. So far, more than 1.5 million plantations have benefited 13,000 farmers in the region by transforming 13,000 acres of

7 June 2024: UltraTech Cement Limited, India’s largest cement and ready-mix concrete company, announced today that it has conserved 105 million cubic meters of water in FY24, making it five times water positive. This conservation includes water reused, recycled, harvested, and recharged within its unit premises and through community interventions, marking a significant increase of over 20 million cubic meters from FY23. UltraTech’s water management efforts extend beyond its unit premises into the communities where it operates. The company’s water conservation initiatives underscore its belief in the criticality of water as a shared resource essential for both business operations and community wellbeing. Proactive measures include installing rainwater harvesting systems across site locations and setting up Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) plants

28th May 2024: Recent reports showed that there was about 35% loss in mangroves between 1996 and 2010, showcasing a concerning trend in environmental degradation. Mangrove ecosystems play a significant role in stabilizing coastlines, making their preservations of coastline, making their preservation a crucial, paramount global threat. They can sequester carbon at a rate five times greater than tropical forests. To respond to this urgent need, United Way Bengaluru (UWBe) has launched their aspiring and impactful campaign, called ‘Mangroves Matter’, to re-energize the mangrove ecosystem. The first foot is at Pulicat or Pazhaverkadu, which is a coastal town near Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Known as the ‘jungle of roots’ in Tamil, Pulicat encompasses a vast expanse of 720 sq. km, constituting

May 13th, 2024: PLEXCONCIL, India’s apex trade body for plastics exports, successfully concluded its inaugural beach clean-up drive in collaboration with Greenmyna, a leading clean energy solutions advocate. The event, held on May 12th, 2024, at Carter Road, Bandra, drew 150 volunteers rallying together to combat plastic pollution and preserve the coastal environment. The beach clean-up drive united a diverse group of participants, including PLEXCONCIL COA Members from the Western region, council officials, students from the Institute of Chemical Technology, Indian Institute of Technology, Indian Plastic Institute, Mumbai and other colleges, as well as environmentally conscious citizens. Together, they collected and disposed of significant amounts of plastic waste, restoring the pristine condition of the shoreline. “We are overwhelmed by the