Understanding sustainability efforts at top firms in India

Abstract

Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) norms are gaining rapid importance worldwide, and India is no less. ESG evaluation begins with the steps that companies take for climate change, diversity and disclosures. Above all, it is about how companies incorporate these principles in their operations and are more transparent. ESG reporting is the publication of data that explains a company's effect and added value in three areas: the environment, social responsibility, and corporate governance. ESG is an umbrella word for components of sustainable and responsible finance. It is a framework that considers environmental, social, and governance considerations in addition to financial reasons when making investment decisions. It is also a procedure for determining how firms perform/score on each of the three factors and whether it is a viable investment. ESG is being mandated by regulatory bodies globally, for instance, European Union SFDR, EU Sustainable Finance Action Plan, etc. It is, thus, inevitable that all countries will make the adoption of ESG norms compulsory. Companies will have no choice but to incorporate ESG norms in their business. ESG framework is looked at not only by financial investors but also by other stakeholders such as vendors, customers, employees and regulatory authorities. To understand the various initiatives, we collated the top 10 companies basis revenue and market capitalization. Below is the list of companies covered and their ESG scores based on the Edelweiss scorecard.