NSE-listed companies increase CSR spending by 23% to Rs 22,212 crore in FY25

Indian companies listed on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) main board significantly increased their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expenditure by 23 per cent to Rs 22,212 crore in FY25, driven by a substantial rise in their average net profits, as revealed by a new report.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expenditure by companies listed on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) main board increased 23 per cent year-on-year to Rs 22,212 crore in 2024-25 (FY25), up from Rs 18,011 crore in the previous financial year, a report published by PRIME Database Group said on Monday.

The rise in spending comes alongside a sharp improvement reported in company profits.

Pranav Haldea, managing director, PRIME Database Group, said the increase was driven by a 22 per cent jump in the average net profit of these companies over the preceding three years.

"This was due to an astounding 22 per cent rise in average net profit (of the preceding 3 years) of these companies, 2 per cent of which needs to be spent on CSR activities as per regulatory requirements," he said.

India's CSR Framework and Compliance

India's CSR framework, effective April 2014, requires eligible firms to allocate two per cent of their average net profit from the last three years towards social initiatives.

The rule applies to companies meeting thresholds on net worth, revenue, or profit. As of March 31, 2025, a total of 2,142 companies were listed on the NSE main board.

Annual reports for 2024–25 were available for 2,081 firms, of which 2,066 disclosed CSR data.

Among these, 1,549 companies were required to undertake CSR spending, compared with 1,399 a year earlier.

According to the report, the combined average net profit of these 1,549 companies rose to Rs 11.76 trillion over the last three years, up from Rs 9.64 trillion in 2023–24.

Based on this, the mandated CSR outlay stood at Rs 22,732 crore for FY25. Actual spending came in slightly lower at Rs 22,212 crore.

Reasons for Spending Gap and Top Contributors

Haldea attributed the gap to higher unspent allocations being transferred to designated accounts.

"The shortfall can be explained by the increase in amount which remained unspent, which was transferred by companies to Unspent CSR Account (Rs 3,223 crore) for use in future years," he said.

Out of the companies mandated to spend, 1,521 firms, or 98 per cent, reported CSR expenditure during the year, while 28 companies did not spend despite being required to do so, the report said.

Overall, 934 companies, accounting for 70 per cent, increased their CSR outlay compared to the previous year, highlighting a broad-based rise in social spending.

At the same time, 751 companies, or 48 per cent, spent more than their prescribed CSR obligation, while 438 companies met the requirement exactly, as reported by primeinfobase.com.

The top 10 companies together accounted for 34 per cent of the total CSR expenditure in FY25.

Leading the list were Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services, ONGC, and ICICI Bank, among others. Reliance Industries alone spent over Rs 1,300 crore, the highest among all companies, followed by HDFC Bank and TCS, the report said.

PSU Contributions and Sectoral Allocations

The report also stated that public sector undertakings (PSUs) increased their CSR contribution; 71 PSUs spent Rs 4,791 crore in FY25, up from Rs 3,717 crore spent by 67 PSUs the previous year.

However, 315 companies fell short of the mandated two per cent spending requirement.

The report further said this was largely due to multi-year CSR projects, with unspent amounts being transferred to designated accounts for future utilisation.

Among sectors, education continued to receive the highest CSR allocation, followed by healthcare.

In contrast, areas such as slum development, disaster management, and support for armed forces veterans saw relatively lower spending, PRIME Database Group said in its report.