CSR has developed through different phases globally, and it has been associated with multiple terminologies such as "corporate philanthropy," "corporate ethics," "corporate social performance," "corporate accountability and sustainability," "triple bottom line," and various others, but CSR has always been at the center of all of these approaches. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs enacted the Firms Act, which mandated CSR and made it mandatory for companies to conduct programmes that aided social and environmental welfare activities. This was the largest experiment in the history of CSR.
This paper Juxtaposes the evolution of CSR from voluntary to compulsory subject, as well as its provisions related to the Companies Act and the impact on initiatives undertaken. Regarding the current COVID-19 pandemic, certain relaxations and other amendments were made through the CSR Amendment Rules, 2021 to encourage corporations to fulfil their CSR activities. Simultaneously, we will examine the future dimensions of this concept, as well as the growing government intervention in motivating and promoting companies to do so, as well as the new amendment's challenges and hurdles.
