HomeSustainable Growth

ECONOMIC PROSPERITY

“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
Definition from: ‘ Our Common Future’ (also known as the Brundtland Report)

Sustainably responsible corporate action and behaviour demands that a balance should be struck between business needs (i.e. the need to create profits and wealth) and the demands of society and the environment. Resolving the conflict between various competing goals involves the simultaneous pursuit of social equity, environmental quality and economic prosperity – the triple bottom line; in other words, a commitment to People, Planet and Profits.

LOCAL EMPLOYMENT

Alok seeks to help raise the quality of life in communities where it operates. The support takes a variety of forms. The Company has a symbiotic relationship with Silvassa and Vapi, which has encouraged and nurtured our growth and development.

WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Local tribal women have few employment and educational opportunities. Alok has trained these local tribal women for its weaving and garmenting plants, who have now become active and competent performers in the Alok workforce.

INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT

 Alok recognises that infrastructural development in and around its plants positively impacts the local community and contributes to its overall well-being. Alok is involved in the repair and improvement of schools and health centres and building and maintaining community halls and initiating measures that improve healthcare facilities.

USE OF SUSTAINABLE RAW MATERIALS

Alok is a Fair Trade partner and all our plants and facilities are FLO certified. We promote the use of Fair Trade cotton in our products. In doing so, we help the resource poor cotton growers get a guaranteed minimum price for their produce and thus respect and encourage greater equity in trade.

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ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

We committed resources in aligning new and clean technology with production factors to help produce textiles with low impact on natural resources.

ORGANIC COTTON

A green environment focus ensures that Alok encourages the cultivation of eco-friendly Organic cotton and uses Organic and Fair Trade cotton in its products.

Involving organic farming practices in the production of cotton fiber, Organic cotton cultivation helps the cotton growers in reducing the input costs, increasing farm yields and increasing total and per unit realization. It involves paying a premium to the grower and redistributing part of the value addition (from cotton to branded end product) down the value chain to up to the farmer.

RECYCLING

 Alok is coming up with a 10 tonnes per day (tpd) plant for recycling polyester. This plant would use polyester and polyester yarn waste, flakes and PET bottles to produce fibre. Alok has already put into place a programme for recycling plastic, where all plastic waste is sent out for recycling and then brought back into the plant as packing material, bags and wrapping rolls.

Cotton waste is generated in spinning, weaving and knitting and garmenting processes. By recycling, Alok can recover approximately 35% to 40% of the waste, which, in turn can be used as raw cotton for producing yarn. 

POLLUTION CONTROL

Alok uses eco-friendly dyes for all its processing; it also ensures that the post-dyeing effluent is not discharged into the environment without it being treated. Alok has also installed reverse osmosis (RO) units at its plants; these help the units to recover fresh water from treated water .To minimise air pollution, Alok has installed Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) systems in the exhaust of DG sets, which reduce oxides of nitrogen.

The Company is certified for ISO 14001:2004 , standard for environment management.

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SOCIAL EQUITY

FAIR EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES

The Company has adopted measures that benefit local population in terms of direct and indirect employment. Alok’s people practices advocates complete adherence to national laws and international practices as far as forced labour and child labour is concerned. 

SAFETY

The Company works actively and trains its employees to promote safe and healthy work processes. In order to ensure fire safety at the plants, an extensive fire suppression system has been put in place.

Alok has attained the Occupational Health & Safety Advisory Services (OHSAS) 18001 certificate.

HEALTHCARE

Employees are regularly tested to see whether the working environment has had any impact on their health.  The Company provides safety masks and ear plugs to workers in the production area. Alok seeks to partner with government and local administration in initiatives that improve the health and provide medical facilities to local communities.

EDUCATION

The Company helps in refurbishing and supporting poor schools. The Company’s initiatives in the education of minor children of migrant labour have helped introduce basic education to a number of children of migrant labour and local communities. Renovations of rural primary and secondary schools, setting up of new education centres, training laboratories and the like are some of the initiatives in which Alok is actively involved.

PEOPLE TRAINING

Alok has attained the SA8000:2008 certification, based on the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Convention on the Rights of the Child and various International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions and covers areas of accountability like labour practices, workplace safety and health, discriminatory employment practices and remuneration.

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