Bhubaneswar:The Anil Agarwal Foundation (AAF), the social impact arm of Vedanta Limited, has announced its impactful social initiatives for FY2023-24, contributing ₹437 crore to transform the lives of over 1.73 crore individuals across India. The Foundation's annual Social Impact Compendium, titled Nurturing, Transforming, Leading: India’s Growth Story & showcases its 153 high-impact social projects, which spanned over 1,200 villages and focused on key areas including education, healthcare, women and child development, skilling and livelihood, animal welfare, and environmental sustainability.
Vedanta’s subsidiaries, Vedanta Aluminium with operations in Jharsuguda and Lanjigarh, and FACOR with operations in Bhadrak made a significant impact on community lives in Odisha by benefitting 6.37 lakh lives.
Among the year and highlights is Anil Agarwal Foundation’s flagship women & child project Nand Ghar which reported a network of 6,044 modern Anganwadis centres across 14 states, including 531 Nand Ghars in the state of Odisha. Nand Ghars across India lend support to 238,161 children and 178,620 women with essential services like early childhood education, nutrition, healthcare, and skill development for women
Priya Agarwal Hebbar, Chairperson of Hindustan Zinc Ltd. and Non-Executive Director of Vedanta Ltd, emphasized the Foundation’s holistic approach to community development, "At Vedanta, our core philosophy of Artha (the value we create) and Dharma (the value we give back) guides our commitment to empowering communities. Every initiative we undertake—from child nutrition and healthcare to skills development & livelihood to sports promotion, cultural preservation and more—aligns with our vision of an empowered, inclusive India .
Odisha’s rich sports culture continues to thrive under Vedanta’s initiatives. The Vedanta Sports Development Initiative in Lanjigarh has tapped into the natural athleticism of tribal communities, focusing on archery and karate. Over 300 young athletes have been trained, with 110 currently receiving professional coaching in archery and karate in Kalahandi. Athletes from the academy brought home 11 national-level medals at the 13th All India Karate Championship.
Vedanta, through its social impact arm, has also been committed to preserving India’s rich cultural heritage by empowering indigenous artisans. Project Adikala launched by Vedanta Lanjigarh, preserves and promotes Odisha’s ancient indigenous artforms, Dhokra and Saura, dating back over 4,000 years to the Indus Valley Civilisation. FACOR’s Kala Kendra trained 10 community women in local bamboo arts & crafts.
In the realm of women empowerment, Subhalaxmi Udyogini, the largest women’s cooperative in Western Odisha with 4,700 members across 434 self-sustained and self-managed SHGs, supported by Vedanta Aluminium-Jharsuguda, provided microfinance services worth ₹12.9 Mn to 865 members in FY 2024, totalling ₹393.6 Mn to 19,660 members to date. This and many other projects by Vedanta, such as Sakhi and FACOR Sathi Pragati, are supporting women across the state.
Under healthcare, one noteworthy initiative is the Nikshay-Mitra initiative which supported 30 Tuberculosis (TB) B patients in Bhadrak with diagnostic, nutritional, and vocational aid through TB kits. 246 mobile health camps by FACOR provided free checkups, consultations, and basic medicines to 15,238 beneficiaries in plant and mine CSR operational areas.
Vedanta also came to the rescue of 2023 Balasore train tragedy survivors by distributing food packets and helping the injured.
