Sampath Bank Athurugiriya Branch initiates Wastage Management Program

Friday, 9 August 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The history of Korathota Temple in Athurugiriya dates back to 2,000 years. The temple located on the top of a mountain next to Balungala Rock, was considered an important location during the period of King Walagamba and King Seetawaka Rajasinghe.

Today, hundreds of devotees flock to the Korathota temple daily to see the historical caves and cave inscriptions, the dome-shaped Dagaba (pagoda), the two shrines dedicated to God Vishnu and Goddess Paththini and there is a Samadhi Statue which is 108 feet tall on the top of the rock under construction. As a result of the huge gathering, the temple surroundings are often filled with leftovers and garbage management has been a major issue for the Korathota temple of late. Displaying its commitment to environment protection and conservation, Sampath Bank Athurugiriya branch has taken an initiative to introduce solid waste management practices to the Korathota Raja Maha Viharaya situated in the area. The Viharaya which had no proper waste management system was provided with ten large garbage bins recently and the temple’s management council was also educated on ways to protect the historical inscriptions. The participation of Sampath Bank employees in large numbers in the drive to educate devotees and villagers on solid waste disposal practices was noteworthy. People have commended Sampath Bank’s efforts to preserve both the environment and the historical site. “The move is a generous and noble one by the bank, reinforcing the need to preserve our history,” a member of the temple’s management council said. CSR is part of the Bank’s core business. Sampath Bank focuses on CSR initiatives where there is value creation in the longer term, thus demonstrating its commitment and respect to all its stakeholders. CSR initiatives of the bank go beyond the natural obligations which govern the bank’s activities in the ordinary course of business. Sampath Bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is based on the 5E model and this project is falling under the theme ‘Environment protection and conservation’. Shifting from Voluntary CSR to Obligatory CSR, the bank has introduced various mechanisms to enhance employee engagement, aligning all CSR initiatives with core business objectives and core competencies. Here the bank spreads out bank level CSR projects in rural and semi urban sectors and focuses on small and medium scale projects to share the benefit with greater number of beneficiaries.