Welspun Operations To Be Entirely Green By 2030: Dipali Goenka

Welspun Living Ltd. aims to be 100% green and sustainable by either 2027 or by 2030, Chief Executive Officer Dipali Goenka said. Speaking at the NDTV World Summit 2024, Goenka asserted that sustainability is not expensive for conducting business.

Goenka spoke about the firm's factory in Kutch, where there is severe water scarcity, and all the water that was being used came from the Narmada river.

"We use 30 million litres of water. If we used that water, the farmers and communities would not have water for use. We take that sewage water and recycle it and use it in our operations. So, farmers get water for irrigation and there's potable water for villages as well," she said at the session titled Women In Business - Redefining Workplace.

The entrepreneur spoke about the firms' efforts towards furthering empowerment of women workers hand in hand with sustainability.

"One of the most interesting programmes I have is the upcycling of rags," Goenka said, where the company hires underprivileged women workers to make cushions and rugs out of the leftover threads from Welspun's textile factories.

"They operate their own bank accounts, and they are earning Rs 20,000 per month because I believe that when a woman is independent and empowered, the child will definitely go to school," the Welspun CEO said.

Goenka said the firm and other conglomerates have a long way to cover when it comes to social responsibility and shaping social change.

"I think the journey's still begun in terms of the 1% the company has to give as corporate social responsibility, If the corporates look at India and not just do business but become agents of change is where we will start making a difference," she said.

Goenka advised women to take charge of their lives by believing in themselves and never giving up.

"The road is not easy, the journey is not going to be easy, and there will be lots of times where you will feel like I want to hang my boots and not do it, but then, that's the time to give that extra effort and move ahead," she said.