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Principle 8

Businesses Should Promote Inclusive Growth And Equitable Development

We believe in crafting a culture of inclusion, where every voice is cherished and heard. We begin by building a strong foundation that fosters awareness, understanding, and respect for individual differences.

We also foster an inclusive workplace that values diversity and ensures equitable access to opportunities. By aligning our efforts with broader societal priorities—such as reducing inequality and preparing people for the future of work—we drive meaningful impact at scale. Through these integrated actions, we contribute to building resilient communities and supporting long-term, inclusive economic growth.

Message from Our Leadership

We are dedicated to building inclusive ecosystems that reflect the diversity of the communities we serve. By embedding equity into our social impact efforts and encouraging broader participation, we aim to foster an equitable and inclusive workforce while creating sustainable opportunities and closing developmental gaps. Our approach is designed to deliver lasting positive change, strengthen community resilience and advance a more inclusive and empowered society.

Harman DhillonExecutive Director, Beauty & Wellbeing

A professional portrait of Harman Dhillon, Executive Director, Beauty and Wellbeing. She is a South Asian woman with long dark hair with natural grey streaks, wearing a dark navy blazer over a black collared shirt, with a small nose stud and a dangling silver earring, with a composed confident expression, in a brightly lit modern corporate office corridor with large windows, glass partitions, recessed ceiling lights, and green indoor plants in the softly blurred background.

25.8% of all goods, services and capex sourced from MSMEs
99.0% of all goods, services and capex sourced from within India
Nil Projects undertaken requiring Rehabilitation and Resettlement
₹25.6 crores CSR Spends in Aspirational Districts.

Essential Indicators

During FY 2025-26, we have not undertaken any projects that require Social Impact Assessments (SIA).

S. no.	Name and brief details of project	SIA Notification No.	Date of notification	Whether conducted by independent external agency (yes/no)	Results communicated in public domain (yes/no)	Relevant web link
1	Not applicable

During FY 2025-26, we have not undertaken any projects that require Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R).

S. no.	Name of Project for which R&R is ongoing	State	District	No. of Project Affected Families (PAFs)	% of PAFs covered by R&R	Amounts paid to PAFs in the FY (In ₹)
1	Not applicable

With regards to grievance redressal for communities, we have various programs on ground to address the respective concerns listed below:

Water in Agriculture: The programmes are implemented through NGO partners, with field teams actively engaging vulnerable communities, particularly on issues related to water and agriculture. Interventions focus on improving water access, use efficiency, agricultural productivity, and income generation. Community based institutional mechanisms such as Kisan Sanghs, Sujal Samittees, Paani Panchayats, and Jal Saheli collectives are used, alongside engagement with local panchayat and block functionaries. Field cadres serve as the first point of contact to address concerns, which are escalated to programme, block, or district teams as required.

Prabhat: Prabhat focuses on strengthening communities around HUL's manufacturing sites through ongoing CSR programmes. HR and CSR teams regularly engage with neighbouring villages to understand community needs and grievances, supported by periodic formal community needs assessments. Based on these inputs, interventions are designed and implemented annually. Community based organisations (CBOs), with representation from women and marginalised groups, provide a structured platform for community members to raise concerns with implementing partners and site teams. These helps to build a positive relationship with the community and address their concerns effectively. Additionally, feedback and grievance mechanisms are available through OPD centres being run under health programme and implementing partner contact channels.

SAFAL: SAFAL focuses on empowering youth and marginalised groups, including women and persons with disabilities (PwDs), to bridge livelihood gaps in the sales and retail sector through skilling, entrepreneurship, and employability interventions. To ensure transparency and accessibility, a Google Form-based grievance redressal mechanism is available at training centres, enabling beneficiaries to raise concerns for timely review and resolution. POSH training is also conducted across centres, supported by active internal committees.

SUVIDHA: Aligned with the Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 and the Sustainable Development Goals, HUL's Suvidha centres provide affordable access to sanitation services—including clean toilets, purified drinking water, showers, and laundry facilities—to residents of informal settlements in Mumbai. The centres operate through a fully digitised system, enabling users to raise service related concerns via a QR code-based app accessible in three languages. All grievances are reviewed by the operations team and are typically resolved within 48 hours.

Category	FY 2025-26	FY 2024-25
Directly sourced from MSMEs/small producers	25.8%	17.9%
Directly from within India	99.0%	95.6%

Location	FY 2025-26	FY 2024-25
Rural	32.0%	32.4%
Semi-urban	7.3%	6.7%
Urban	6.2%	7.2%
Metropolitan	54.5%	53.7%

Leadership Indicators

S.No.	Details of negative social impact identified	Corrective action taken
1	Not applicable

We are dedicated to contributing to the socio-economic development of aspirational districts identified by Niti Aayog. The interventions are focused on improving various development indicators in the selected districts. Below is an overview of our CSR projects undertaken in these districts, highlighting our efforts to maximize investment and impact.

Our CSR initiatives in aspirational districts have delivered measurable improvements in livelihoods, water and waste management, and other critical development areas, contributing to better quality of life and sustainable regional development. By strategically focusing investments and leveraging strong partnerships, we have maximised impact and remain committed to driving sustained and inclusive growth in these districts

S. no.	State	Aspirational district	Amount spent (In ₹)
1	Multiple	Multiple*	11,89,97,967
2	Uttarakhand	Haridwar	2,56,09,915
3	Maharashtra	Gadchiroli	2,49,44,378
4	Tamilnadu	Ramanathapuram	1,75,94,110
5	Kerala	Wayanad	1,41,20,354
6	Chhattisgarh	Bastar	1,20,38,402
7	Chhattisgarh	Sukma	1,11,66,866
8	Chhattisgarh	Kanker	1,09,18,015
9	Chhattisgarh	Kondagaon	1,05,88,969
10	Chhattisgarh	Dantewada	1,01,77,843
Total			25,61,56,819

*75 out of the 112 aspirational districts notified by the NITI Aayog
Total 84 aspirational districts covered through our programs

We are committed to growing our business responsibly, guided by our purpose to make sustainable living commonplace and our belief that what is good for India is good for HUL. Our CSR approach prioritises the inclusion of vulnerable groups, including women, children, the elderly, persons with disabilities, and small and marginal farmers. Through community needs assessments and regular stakeholder engagement, our programmes are designed to address their specific challenges through targeted capacity building and infrastructure support. This inclusive approach has led to improved livelihoods, better access to development infrastructure, and stronger community cohesion. We remain committed to continuously evaluating and refining our projects to ensure they effectively address the evolving needs of vulnerable groups.

S. no.	CSR project	No. of persons benefitted from CSR projects	% of beneficiaries from vulnerable and marginalised groups
1	Prabhat	12,74,866	84
2	Suvidha	6,00,000	40
3	HUF	4,53,178	86
4	Shakti	4,10,634	100
5	Sanjeevani	4,06,084	100
6	Plastic Circular Bharat	2,82,323	70
7	Women Safety and Livelihoods	2,78,659	80
8	Road Safety	1,18,257	64
9	Regen Ag	35,829	50
10	SAFAL	15,245	84
11	Other Projects (9)	2,036	88

In addition to the above, we also run several behavioural change programmes across all media channels which has a widespread reach.

Principle 8

Message from Our LeadershipMessage fromOur Leadership

Essential Indicators

Leadership Indicators

Message from Our Leadership