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An amount of Rs 4,094 crore has been spent in Tamil Nadu by the corporates under the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) between 2014-2020, said a study by Sattva Consulting.

There are now five corporates that contribute more than Rs 500 crore annually through CSR itself.

The report was released on the sidelines of the first Tamil Nadu CSR Summit 2021 organised by Sattva Consulting in partnership with Madras Management Association (MMA) and Dhwani Foundation.

Tamil Nadu is among the top performing states on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

It has a composite SDG score -- which includes all key development sectors, including health, education, employment, sanitation, energy, among others -- of 74 and ranks second on NITI Aayog's SDG Index 2020-21, the study added.

According to the study, of the Rs.92,605 crore of CSR funds spent by the Indian corporates since 2014 when it became a law, Tamil Nadu got Rs 4,094 crore.

In the last two years from 2018-2019 and 2019-2020, the southern state received more than Rs 800 crore each from different corporates in the country.

Companies headquartered in Tamil Nadu played a key role, with 72 per cent of CSR funds received coming from them.

The various key insights from the report include:

The top three funding industries are banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), manufacturing and energy.

Chennai received the bulk of CSR outlays at close to 25 per cent, with Vellore and Coimbatore at a little more than six and five per cent, respectively.

The NITI Aayog recognised aspirational districts -- Ramanathapuram and Virudhanagar -- which are yet to meet many of the markers as per the SDGs, received less than one per cent outlay across the last six years. The three districts of Ariyalur, Tenkasi and Tirupattur received none.

Education was the most preferred segment which the organisations supported, with healthcare and rural development coming in at second and third place.

As per the study, CSR spending across the country has more than doubled, becoming a significant source of development funding in India.

CSR investments have also evolved from being only compliance-focused to a more strategic impact-first approach, going beyond CSR regulations and standards.

This form of strategic CSR leads to greater value creation for the communities as well as gets greater buy-in from companies, who now see the benefits of CSR upon their businesses as well, making it a win-win situation for all.

Experience over the years showcases that data-backed insights provide an advantage for the decision-making process, specifically in socially responsible activities to implement more strategic CSR policies.

The role of data is becoming increasingly critical in the social impact ecosystem to design and scale the most relevant and impactful initiatives, the study added.