India Recognises Berger Paints CSR And Smile Foundation Impact
A collaborative upskilling initiative between Berger Paints India and Smile Foundation has been honoured with a national social entrepreneurship award, highlighting a market-linked model of skills training that is reshaping livelihoods in India’s informal construction workforce. The accolade, conferred at the Biz Connect Summit, recognises measurable impact from the iTrain on Wheels programme, a mobile vocational training effort that has directly reached hundreds of thousands of paint applicators nationwide.
Launched in partnership in 2021, the iTrain on Wheels initiative deploys mobile training units to deliver free, contextually tailored skills development to unorganised paint applicators — a group traditionally excluded from formal vocational systems. Operating across 26 states and three union territories, the programme has so far trained more than 3.15 lakh workers in contemporary painting techniques, entrepreneurship and soft skills, helping many transition from informal, low-income roles to more stable, higher-earning work.Urban development specialists point to the significance of such interventions as cities expand and construction activities proliferate. Durable, high-quality application techniques improve building longevity and finish standards, while access to entrepreneurial skills fosters self-employment and micro-enterprise growth in peri-urban and metropolitan economies. By targeting workers at the grassroots, the partnership extends the benefits of India’s infrastructure boom to often overlooked segments of the labour force.
The award was presented by a senior civic leader and received on behalf of both partners by the national head of sales excellence and training at Berger Paints, alongside Smile Foundation representatives. In its citation, the jury emphasised the initiative’s measurable outcomes — particularly its breadth of reach in aspirational districts and its integration of technical and soft skill curricula tailored to local economic conditions.Beyond technical competency, the iTrain on Wheels model measures impact through socio-economic outcomes. Independent assessments show significant improvements in household food security, increased asset acquisition such as personal vehicles and better financial decision-making among participants. These shifts point to a broader shift in economic agency for workers historically engaged in casual or seasonal employment.
Experts in workforce development underline the importance of such mobile and decentralised training efforts in addressing structural barriers that formal institutions often miss. Workers in remote or peri-urban communities frequently face logistical hurdles — from travel costs to time away from work — that conventional skill centres do not address. By bringing training directly to local sites, the programme strengthens human capital while lowering these access barriers.CSR stakeholders also note that embedding soft skills, including customer engagement, budgeting and business management, is critical for long-term income stability. For informal sector workers such as painters, these capabilities can support transitions to independent contractors, enabling them to capture greater value within the construction value chain and contribute more effectively to local economic ecosystems.
As urban and infrastructure development accelerates across India, scalable, outcome-oriented CSR initiatives that enhance skills and livelihoods will be increasingly essential. The recognition of this collaboration between Berger Paints India and Smile Foundation underscores a growing emphasis on sustainable, inclusive approaches to workforce empowerment — with potential models that other sectors can adapt in pursuit of resilient urban growth.
