New Delhi [India], July 3 : The two-day North East CSR Connect - Unlocking North East's Potential, has been launched by the industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on Wednesday here in New Delhi.

Inaugurated by the chief guest, Sukanta Majumdar, Minister of State, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, the initiative aims to bridge the gap between the corporate sector and the northeast's socio-economic development, through impactful initiatives in partnership with the Government.

In his address, Sukanta Majumdar highlighted that the Rs 10,000 crore UNNATI Scheme introduced for the North East will bring investments into the region.
The central ministries are spending 10 per cent of their gross budgetary support in the North Eastern Region not only through their ongoing schemes but also through dedicated schemes for the North Eastern Region.
This shows the focus towards the region, he added.
The Government of India's focus on increasing bilateral cooperation with Bangladesh has opened up a lot of avenues for industry to do business in the region by using the Chittagong port. He said industry should take advantage of this trade corridor holds a pivotal position as a gateway to Southeast Asia.

Chanchal Kumar, Secretary of the Ministry for Development of North Eastern Region, asserted that there is a need to mobilise additional resources for the northeast region and that infusion of private funding is likely to hasten the development of the region.
The CSR contribution in NER is limited and needs to be addressed at the policy level and hence the need for forums like these. He added that state governments should develop a repository of investible projects for each State to attract CSR investments.

Earlier, in his welcome address, R Mukundan, Vice President, CII and Managing Director, Tata Chemicals Limited said that over the last 10 years, the journey of CSR moved from 2 percentage compliance-oriented approach to an increased focus on transparency and impact orientation.
With participation from the North East state governments and central ministries, over 100 NGOs were connected with over 80 corporates for cooperation and partnerships. A compendium was released by the Minister of State during the Inaugural Session. On the sidelines, an exhibition was set up to showcase social development projects.
The rules in Section 135 of the Companies Act 2013 make it mandatory for companies of a certain turnover and profitability to spend 2 per cent of their average net profit for the past three years on corporate social responsibility activities.