The AMM Foundation, the CSR arm of the Murugappa Group on Thursday, said that it has completed 100 years.
Established in 1924 with the inauguration of the AMM Hospital in Pallathur, Sivaganga, the AMM Foundation now manages several institutions and projects across India. Under the healthcare division, the Foundation manages five hospitals — AMM Hospital (Pallathur), Sir Ivan Stedeford Hospital (Avadi, Chennai), AMM Arunachalam Hospital (Nellikuppam, Cuddalore), Valliammai Achi Hospital (Kadayalumoodu, Kanniyakumari) and Coromandel Hospital (Kakinada).
M.A.Alagappan, Managing Trustee of the AMM Foundation, highlighted how consultation is being done at a subsidised rate across the hospitals. “Open heart surgeries are done at reasonable costs,” he said. He also said that medicines are being procured directly from the manufacturers and given at low margins. Apart from healthcare, the foundation trains young children, especially from the fishermen community in football. The Murugappa Youth Football Academy is a training facility aimed at reaching out to underserved communities. Over 400 children are benefiting and learning football, he said.
The foundation has also recently begun a water rejuvenation project called Nanneer in the Sivaganga region. Currently, seven waterbodies have been restored under this project. “We grow native species of trees,” Mr.Alagappan said. On an average, around ₹40 crore is being spent on the CSR activities.
The foundation also manages five educational institutions. Apart from these institutions, the foundation also enables higher education support through the AMM Murugappa Chettiar Centenary Scholarship programme; and the reach of practical science education through the mobile science van and the Murugappa Science Centre in Sivaganga and Pudukottai districts in Tamil Nadu. The Shri AMM Murugappa Chettiar Research Centre works in areas related to food and nutrition through sustainable agriculture, renewable energy and environmental protection for rural community development.
