India’s ESG momentum is growing but much of it remains on paper. With SEBI mandating BRSR for the top 1,000 listed companies and now introducing BRSR Core, the country has introduced some of the most comprehensive ESG reporting mandates in the region.
Over 1,000 listed companies submitted BRSR reports in FY 2022–23, marking a significant shift in regulatory expectations. But despite the increase in disclosures, the impact on business operations remains marginal. ESG in India risks becoming a ritual of compliance rather than a lever of strategic and operational transformation.
India doesn’t lack ESG frameworks. What it lacks is alignment between what’s disclosed and what’s operationally real. No new guideline will bridge that gap unless businesses are structurally equipped to act on ESG, not just report it. Until ESG is embedded into core functions and decision-making, its impact will remain limited to compliance, not transformation.
Today, reports are filed, metrics are declared, and compliance is ticked off. But dig deeper, and you’ll find that much of the data rests on estimates, broad assumptions, or fragmented supplier inputs.
Without real-time systems to capture and validate this information, ESG ends up being a backward-looking exercise, a story companies tell after the fact, rather than a tool they use to make decisions in the present.
This disconnect is most visible in Scope 3 emissions, indirect emissions that originate across supply chains. Globally, Scope 3 accounts for 75% or more of total corporate emissions, and in India, the figure is often higher due to the density and fragmentation of supplier ecosystems.
According to SEBI’s own review, less than 30% of India’s top listed companies disclosed any Scope 3 data last year. Even among those that did, many lacked independent verification. In short, India Inc is operating without a clear view of its largest climate footprint.
India’s supply chains are powered by over 63 million MSMEs, most of which do not have the digital tools, sustainability frameworks, or emission tracking capabilities required by ESG standards. These businesses are the backbone of sectors like manufacturing, automotive, textiles, and food processing, yet they remain largely excluded from the ESG transition.
Equipping them is essential not just for compliance, but because without incentives, education, and a clear understanding of why sustainability matters, they have little reason to change existing practices. When MSMEs recognise that ESG adoption strengthens market access, competitiveness, and long-term resilience, Scope 3 compliance transforms from a corporate aspiration into a shared national achievement.
India’s push for ESG disclosures has brought much-needed transparency but the journey from reporting to accountability is still underway. At present, most ESG reports face limited validation, and there are few consequences for data that’s incomplete or inconsistent. This isn’t about blame, it’s about strengthening the system.
For ESG to truly support long-term business value and resilience, the focus must shift from producing reports to backing them with verifiable, operational data that can stand up to scrutiny. That’s where trust is built and lasting change begins.
The urgency is not just domestic. With the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) coming into force, Indian exporters, especially in sectors like chemicals, textiles, and auto components, will soon face stringent due diligence requirements on emissions, labour rights, and supply chain traceability.
Indian companies that cannot demonstrate credible ESG performance risk losing access to global buyers, finance, and markets. ESG is no longer about reputation, it’s about business continuity and competitiveness.
The next phase of ESG in India must be grounded in operational visibility. That means equipping procurement teams, factory managers, and logistics networks with the systems and signals to make sustainability a day-to-day decision.
ESG cannot live in PDF reports alone, it must live in the flows of energy, materials, capital, and data that power our economy. And it must extend to the smallest supplier, not just the largest corporate.
India doesn’t lack intent, it lacks visibility. Until we begin capturing ground-truth data from the actual sites of production, use, and impact, we will remain trapped in a cycle of high-level ambition and low-level adoption.
ESG can only succeed when it is verified, not just declared. When it is distributed, not centralised. And when it moves beyond frameworks and into the core mechanics of how Indian businesses operate, compete, and grow.
