IT employees celebrate World Environment Day.  IT-BPO employees volunteer with NASSCOM Foundation and clean Mumbai railway station

Mumbai, World Environment Day, June 5, 2010: NASSCOM Foundation today organized a cleanup drive of Ghatkopar Station along with employee volunteers from InfrasoftTech, Pangea3, Tata Consultancy Services, Tricom Information and Technology, WNS Global Services, Mphasis, Oracle and Zenith Computers on the occasion of World Environment Day.

NASSCOM Foundation [NF], the social development arm of NASSCOM, initiated the clean up drive – a collaborated volunteering event of the IT-BPO industry, which was focused towards the environment, as an outcome of a decision taken by NF’s Mumbai CSR Forum.

The local train system of Mumbai is its very lifeline, carrying millions of people to their destinations every day. Ghatkopar station was chosen by Mumbai CSR Forum for this drive as most of the participant companies are located in the vicinity. The clean-up drive is the first in a campaign to sensitize citizens and railway passengers towards the necessity and pressing need to take pride in our public infrastructure.

The cleaning material was sponsored by the participant companies and the volunteers did everything right from sweeping the platforms, to cleaning spittle from the wall. The volunteers also made it a point to reach out to all the stalls at the stations and commuters and educate them about the importance of hygiene and cleanliness. They were briefed before the event by NF’s activity partner United Way.

Ms.Gouri Raverkar, CSR Manager at NASSCOM Foundation says” The enthusiasm of the volunteers was so contagious, that a passerby decided to volunteer there and then and put on a volunteer tee-shirt and joined us. This is one of the many positive responses we got from the general public”

NASSCOM Foundation initiated regional CSR forums earlier this year. These forums are being driven by Steering Committees comprising of CSR Practitioners from the IT-BPO industry. The need for periodic forums and volunteering events where member companies can voice their thoughts, employees connect and act on social issues; was borne out in the course of collecting data for NASSCOM Foundation’s CSR research publication.

The clean up drive was carried out by 120 employee volunteers from InfrasoftTech, Pangea3, TCS, Tricom, WNS, Mphasis, Oracle and Zenith Computers. Most of the volunteers are active on NASSCOM Foundation’s programme MyKartavya. www.mykartavya.com is a volunteer management portal for NASSCOM member companies. To foster the spirit of volunteering in employees NASSCOM Foundation also organizes such events that give corporate employees an opportunity to relate to different issues and choose a cause to identify with.
Additionally, NASSCOM Foundation also helps IT-BPO companies manage e-waste through a programme called Big Bridge. Through this programme, old computers from IT organizations are re-furbished, re-loaded with content and channelized to non profits across India.

On the occasion of World Environment Day, NASSCOM Foundation also initiated CEO Volunteer Day in Delhi today. Here, CEO’s from IT companies proved to be an inspiration to young IT-BPO professionals by planting a sapling at The Rose Garden, Okhla each along with under privileged children of Don Bosco Night Shelter Home for Boys. Those present included Som Mittal, President, NASSCOM and Trustee, NASSCOM Foundation; Sudip Nandy, CEO, Aricent; Diwakar Nigam, CEO, Newgen; T.K. Mangalam, Senior Consultant TCS, G V Singh, CIO & Centre Leader Steria; Sanjeev Badhwar, Location Head, Mphasis; Paritosh Sharma, Founder, Until ROI and Simi Suri, HCL CSR Lead.

About NASSCOM Foundation

NASSCOM Foundation (NF) aims to channelize the potential of the IT-BPO industry towards inclusive development of India. NASSCOM Foundation is the social development arm of NASSCOM, the internationally recognized trade body of the Indian IT-BPO industry.

NASSCOM Foundation was established to transform the lives of the underserved by leveraging the resources of the IT-BPO industry. NASSCOM Foundation is a charity registered under the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 and under Section 12A of Income Tax Act.
For more information, please visit www.nasscomfoundation.org