Care for the community and sustainability concerns are an integral part of Tata Chemicals Value system.

Over the years, TCL has embedded these values into its operations in a variety of ways, such as promoting and establishing the Tata Chemicals Society for Rural Development (TCSRD), undertaking and establishing programs and processes for greening and conservation and promotion of volunteerism within the organization. An integrated approach is adopted towards development, wherein, creating social capital within the communities that we serve is given prime importance. This year the program at Babrala was the recipient of CII ITC sustainability award. Uday a Rural BPO, set up in partnership with Tata Business Service Solutions (TBSS) at Mithapur and Babrala to help bridge the digital divide between the rural and urban population, continued to provide employment to 266 educated rural youth. Okhai is now becoming a well-known brand for handicrafts and garments made bycommunities around Mithapur and Babrala. More than 450 women are associated with Okhai. Going forward, Okhai will integrate all such initiatives that are linked to rural products under it with an aim to empower the artisans associated with it. The Company has developed expertise in water management and continues to provide facilitation and resources for making more and more villages surrounding our sites water self-sufficient. A research study has been initiated to understand the impact of water initiatives, and the chart the future course. Ponds are an integral part of the Bengali ethos and at Haldia a program for scientific pond management has been taken up. A model village has been developed to showcase the benefits of pond management and create market linkage for the fish produce. On the conservation front, the Company continues to support the Dharti Ko Arpan programs. These include efforts to save the Asiatic Lion by barricading 1000 open wells in the Gir Wildlife sanctuary in association with the Gujarat Forest Department and Mangrove plantation in association with International Union for Conservation ofNature (IUCN). TCL has also promoted eco-clubs in the rural schools and 20 such clubs promoting understanding and awareness about environment and ecology have been formed. TCL has continued to provide support to Save the Whale Shark Campaign. This year, we took this further to initiate a scientific study on the whale shark so that we can ensure the long term survival of the largest fish in the world which is in the critically endangered list. We also initiated work on coral reef securitization. Both these programs are being done in collaboration with WildlifeTrust of India. TCL also continued to provide development support to the community through programs on health (eye camps, Swasthangan), education (Bal Utsav, adult education) and building infrastructure as required. The employees of Tata Chemicals have participated whole heartedly in all of these programs and the employee volunteering program HOPE was also initiated in the corporate offices. Employees volunteered more than 24,000 hours towards community development during the year. Community welfare and development activities have also been carried out at our international locations. At Magadi Soda Kenya, the programs focused on: Community engagement process Leveraging support from stakeholders Water supply to the local communities and establishment of Magadi water and sanitation company. Championing the construction of and improving infrastructure of Patterson Memorial School to support education Providing scholarships to children Health care, HIV& AIDS prevention program Community Skills Upgrade program Promotion of community co-operative for taking up outsourced jobs. Magadi Soda Foundation was established to further increase the focus on development in the region. During this year, monthly consultative SWOT Committee meetings with the community were held to deliberate on issues affecting the Company and the community. These meetings enhanced a peaceful co-existence with the local community. Quarterly meetings were held with stakeholders in Magadi division to coordinate development issues in the division. The Company collaborated with the district steering group through Arid Lands and Neighbors Initiative Alliance for water trucking. The main aim was to support the pastoralists access to water for livestock and domestic use during the dry season. Agricultural and livestock extension programmes within the division were supported

through partnership with the government departments i.e. National Agricultural & Livestock ExtensionProgramme (NALEP). Special support was provided to the Patterson Memorial School for construction of administration block, class rooms, laboratory, teachers residences and solar powered lighting system. ------------------------------------Chemistry with a conscience

Tata Chemicals' corporate philosophy is deeply rooted in principles of sustainability. It recognises that sustainability encompasses environmental stewardship, adding economic value, promoting human rights and building social capital.

Care for the community For several decades now, the company has consistently demonstrated its concern for its communities (both internal and external) and a respect for its environment and the local ecology. The townships of Mithapur, Babrala and Haldia are unique examples of corporate-community bonding where community initiatives go hand in hand with local infrastructural development schemes.

TCL plants have won several national and international accolades for their safety, health and environment and community development practices. The community development initiatives at Mithapur, Babrala and Haldia are focused on crucial issues such as watershed development, rural energy and education and health. All of these form a part of the UN Millennium Development Goals.

Inclusion Tata Chemicals' approach has always been inclusive and is based on participatory development principles. The company has taken technology to rural India by setting up rural BPO centres that provide new age employment opportunities to the non-urban population. Another inclusive growth model is the Tata Kisan Sansar network that encourages rural entrepreneurship, capability building and co-creating value with farmers.

Clean climate In recent times, Tata Chemicals' sustainable enterprise strategy has focused on ensuring that a greater proportion of its product portfolio is produced with green technologies and uses clean development mechanisms. Tata Chemicals along with other Tata companies has embarked upon a climate change policy that includes mapping carbon footprint and creating an abatement strategy for sustainable manufacturing. The company is using its innovation and technological expertise to create new green products that address the planet's most pressing issues, such as the need for green fuels, efficient water management, afforestation, etc.

The company is a signatory with several leading bodies such as the Global Round Table on Climate Change and the CII Mission for Sustainable Growth. -----------------

Respect for nature

At Mithapur, the vast acres of salt pans are nurtured as a nesting habitat for thousands of migratory birds, making it a birdwatcher's paradise in the winter months. The waters of the Gulf of Kutchch are an acknowledged marine sanctuary where the company funds conservation projects focused on the

endangered whale shark, marine turtles, mangrove habitats and the coral reefs of the Gujarat coastline. The whale shark project is a joint effort of Tata Chemicals with the Wildlife Trust of India and the government of Gujarat.

Eco-impact Apart from preservation and conservation efforts, Tata Chemicals actively works towards reducing its impact on the surrounding ecology. What makes the company unique is a clear policy of `avoid, reduce and reuse' that governs its business practices. Resource optimisation, alternative sources of fuels and raw materials, and maximising `reuse and recycle' options play a key role in the policy.

Water resources Instead of depleting the scarce ground water resources of the drought-prone region, Tata Chemicals has opted for reverse osmosis technology at its Mithapur plant. The Babrala plant is a benchmark in low water consumption figures. Haldia has put up a condensate recovery system. All three plants have instituted measures to recycle and reuse waste water, harvest rain water, and reduce consumption. Tata Chemicals actively supports the community to harvest, conserve and optimise the use of water.

New products from old Initiatives to control and limit effluents and waste from the chemical complex have led to the setting up of a cement plant on the site that converts waste material into high quality cement. A water management initiative for the Mithapur plant and township have led to the conversion of the waste product salt being processed and enhanced as a health product that offsets iodine deficiency.

Waste management Tata Chemicals ensures that all its plants strive to minimise the discharge of effluents and go beyond meeting statutory norms for the quality of the discharge. Stringent solid and hazardous waste management processes are also followed at all plants. ---------------------

Care and commitment

Tata Chemicals' corporate philosophy goes beyond social responsibility to a passionate concern for the communities in which it operates.

Self-sufficiency In 1980, the company set up the Tata Chemicals Society for Rural Development (TCSRD), an organisation that works to protect and nurture rural populations in and around TCL's facilities, and helps community members achieve self-sufficiency in natural resource management, livelihood support and the building of health and education infrastructure. Taking into account the diverse geographical spread and the individual subcultures, different agricultural, economic and development programmes have been implemented in Mithapur, Babrala and Haldia.

Employment opportunities The latest initiatives include setting up rural centres for business process outsourcing (BPOs) at Mithapur and Babrala, as employment opportunities for the rural underprivileged.

Local traditions Local handicrafts have been given a boost through a branding exercise; the `Okhai' initiative will market rural handicrafts and garments in retail stores and on the internet. In Babrala a programme to foster the local Karjobi embroidery has also shown significant impact. At Haldia, ponds are an integral part of the local ecology; TCL has taken up several programmes that foster better pond management techniques.

Health initiatives At Lake Magadi, Kenya, the company focused on food and water supplement programmes, health and education, and skill upgradation. Maga di Sodas corporate social responsibility programme has won the Kenya Institute of Managements Company of the Year Corporate Citizenship Awards six times over the last ten years. The programme has been recognised by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) as a model for business and community partnership. ----------------------------

Green chemistry

With the adverse effects of climate change becoming increasingly evident, companies in India and other developing nations face several new challenges: improving energy efficiencies, developing clean technologies, reducing effluent and greenhouse gas emissions, etc.

Green protocols In keeping with the Montreal Protocol, Tata Chemicals has stopping producing methyl bromide and consuming carbon tetra chloride and freon-12 (known as ozone depleting substances). All Tata Chemical plants have achieved 100 per cent compliance with environmental norms for the last three years running.

Green products Tata Chemicals, as a part of its green chemistry drive, is focusing on developing and introducing new green products that will help mitigate the impact of climate change. New offerings such as products for flue gas treatment and carbon absorption, and nanotechnology based glass-coatings for insulation are a part of the development programme at the Tata Chemicals Innovation Centre.

Alternative fuels The company has invested in developing alternative and more environment-friendly biofuels such as bioethanol from sweet sorghum crops, and biodiesel from jatropha. The company uses renewable sources of energy where possible: solar energy to produce salt for its soda ash plant, biomass fuel for hot air generators.

Clean development Tata Chemicals has registered several clean development mechanism (CDM) projects with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC); these projects relate to energy reduction and methane reduction.

Energy efficiency Recent investments in General Chemical Industrial Products and Magadi Soda Company have given Tata Chemicals access to natural soda ash deposits in Wyoming, USA and Lake Magadi, Kenya.

These have resulted in improving energy efficiencies across the group. The Babrala plant is benchmarked as one of the world's lowest in energy consumption. ----------------------

Looking at the future

Ground zero | Global community | Participatory development

The concept and practice of sustainability is at the core of all Tata Chemicals' activities, including its corporate social responsibility initiatives. Sustainable community development ensures benefits of a better quality of life now, as well as for future generations, and involves resolving the current needs of the community without jeopardising the development needs of future generations.

This concept is integral to Tata Chemicals Society for Rural Development (TCSRD) and therefore the key element that TCSRD brings to the community is knowledge knowledge of new methods of agriculture, better management of land and water resources, social and human capital management, and other tools of empowerment.

Ground zero Tata Chemicals established TCSRD in Mithapur in 1980 as a result of its need to engage, understand and address the needs of its neighbouring community. When the fertiliser plant at Babrala was commissioned TCSRD became active in that area; on TCL acquiring the Haldia operations, TCSRD started its operations in that community.

This has been a long journey for TCSRD. It started its work by following traditional philanthropy and welfare approach. It has since been continuously improving its philosophy and work by revisiting and reflecting on its approaches, the impact of its programmes and relating that with the needs of the community it serves. Today TCSRD has evolved its current Vision and Mission statements where the concept of sustainability has a central role.

Global community As Tata Chemicals has grown and new companies and geographies have come within its global umbrella, the scope of TCSRD's operations has grown as well. In the recent past, TCSRD has become involved with the Brunner Mond group which has operations in Europe and Kenya. Community leaders from Kenya have visited TCSRD programmes at Mithapur and taken back with them the concepts of community participation and participatory development. TCSRD has engaged with the community there by training them in various processes, especially in management of water resources.

Participatory development is the mantra for TCSRD along with working in partnership with all development agencies, be it the government, other non-governmental organisations or members of the community.

The key drivers at TCSRD are learning from others, and sharing and growing both in terms of reach and impact. In 2008, the 28th year of its inception, significant new initiatives have been started, including the setting up of rural BPOs and the Karjobi promotion at Babrala. These are all steps in TCSRD's journey towards integrated sustainable development of all the regions that TCL operates in.

Participatory development Participatory development is the mantra for TCSRD along with working in partnership with all development agencies, be it the government, other non-governmental organisations or members of the community.

The key drivers at TCSRD are learning from others, and sharing and growing both in terms of reach and impact. In 2008, the 28th year of its inception, significant new initiatives have been started, including the setting up of rural BPOs and the Karjobi promotion at Babrala.

These are all steps in TCSRD's journey towards integrated sustainable development of all the regions that TCL operates in.