Corporate Social Responsibility of Banks and Public Awareness: A Study in Assam

The main purpose of this study is to find out the thrust area and scope of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities from the point of view of common public and also to find out the gap in the activities carried out by the banking institutions and the areas for CSR according to the public. For the purpose of the study, a comparative analysis of both public and private sector institutions in carrying out their CSR activities is also included in the paper. This study is based on both primary as well as secondary data collected from the public and reports of the banking institutions for the past five years (2010-11 to 2014-15). The areas of CSR activities being vast in nature cannot be studied totally, and as a result, only specific areas that have been mentioned in the annual reports of the banking institutions have been included in the study. The analysis has been carried out in two parts: the first part shows the areas and the unique activity or schemes being undertaken by each individual bank and the second part of the analysis shows the general public views on CSR.