It has just updated, in some detail, POWERGRID’s commitment to safety, environmental sustainability, and social responsibility in practices and initiatives. The scheme visualizes protection regarding the workplace safety of its employees through hazard identification, risk assessment, training, and emergency response. POWERGRID enforces the best safety standards throughout all operations and extends these requirements to contractors to ensure a safe operating environment for all personnel. The company has a Safety Cell that oversees performance and ensures accident prevention at transmission lines and substations. There are regular safety audits, briefings, and mock drills to prepare employees and contractors for dealing with emergencies. Further, in the realm of corporate social responsibility initiatives, POWERGRID works for the cause of local communities, in particular addressing the needs of SC, ST, and persons with disabilities.
POWERGRID’s environmental practices are oriented towards minimizing its ecological footprint. The company has fitted a zero liquid discharge system in all its plants, while the domestic sewage of the facilities is treated through soak pits and STPs. Even without any industrial effluent discharge, the best practices in treating wastewater are still maintained by the company. There have been many developments by the organization in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It has also brought down the leakage of SF6 gas, which is a highly potent greenhouse gas, by 44.65% and is mulling alternatives for the phasing out of SF6 in its substations. POWERGRID is also developing renewable energy sources and has set a target to derive at least 50% of its power from non-fossil sources by 2025. Apart from this, the installed solar PV systems are being expanded further to decrease Scope-2 emissions.
POWERGRID has a reduce, recycle, and reuse policy related to waste management. Ensuring that hazardous wastes are disposed of through agencies duly authorized for the purpose gives due emphasis to responsible consumption of resources, which helps in reducing the generation of waste. There have been no cases of anti-competitive conduct or regulatory penalties arising on account of safety or product recall during the year. POWERGRID has in place an Information Security Policy for safeguarding data privacy and has obtained ISO 27001 certification for information security management systems.
The means of land acquisition by the company for its project work are based on the principles of ethical practices. POWERGRID acquires land only on a “willing buyer, willing seller” basis and by being transparent and fair to all parties concerned. No social impact assessments were necessitated under the recent projects. However, POWERGRID has pledged continuous support to community welfare through its CSR initiatives. The grievance redressal mechanisms adopted by the company include an online interface and effective committees to address the concerns of people in the community.
In other words, POWERGRID’s manifold safety, environmental, and social practices underline their commitment to responsible operations and community support. The proactive initiatives of the company towards safety management, environmental sustainability, waste management, and ethical land acquisition will only support its stand as a responsible corporate entity committed to making a positive impact and contributing towards sustainable development.
Source: BRSR
Credit: POWERGRID