Locating the future of ESG in India’s present sustainability framework

Abstract

India’s present sustainability framework for corporates largely consists of scattered obligations across various legislative frameworks. The purpose of this study is to understand corporate response to different sustainability obligations in India. Through this, the study aims to understand if the CSR regime alone is enough to meet India’s sustainability requirements or if further changes are required. CSR disclosures of the top 25 fortune India 500 companies over 2 years are contrasted against their ESG risk rating per Indian and foreign ESG risk rating agencies. Findings indicate that all eligible companies are large proponents of CSR but are hardly in tune with the other sustainability obligations under Indian laws. Unfortunately, the impactful CSR regime does not appear to result in good ESG performances. In response to this finding, the paper concludes with recommendations to rectify the same.

Appendices

Annexure 1. List of companies

2020

• 1. Reliance Industries

• 2. Indian Oil Corporation

• 3. Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (‘ONGC’)

• 4. State Bank of India (‘SBI’)

• 5. Bharat Petroleum Corporation (‘BPCL’)

• 6. Tata Motors

• 7. Rajesh Exports

• 8. Tata Consultancy Services

• 9. ICICI Bank

• 10. Larsen & Toubro

• 11. HDFC Bank

• 12. Tata Steel

• 13. Hindalco Industries

• 14. NTPC

• 15. Coal India

• 16. Mahindra & Mahindra

• 17. Infosys

• 18. Bank of Baroda

• 19. Bharti Airtel

• 20. Nayara Energy

• 21. Vedanta

• 22. Axis Bank

• 23. Grasim Industries

• 24. Maruti Suzuki India

• 25. GAIL (India)

2021

• 1. Reliance Industries

• 2. State Bank of India (‘SBI’)

• 3. Indian Oil Corporation

• 4. Oil & Natural Gas Company

• 5. Tata Motors

• 6. Bharat Petroleum Corporation (‘BPCL’)

• 7. Tata Consultancy Services

• 8. ICICI Bank

• 9. Tata Steel

• 10. HDFC Bank

• 11. Larsen & Turbo

• 12. HDFC

• 13. Hindalco Industries

• 14. NTPC

• 15. Bharti Airtel

• 16. Infosys

• 17. Coal India

• 18. Punjab National Bank (‘PNB’)

• 19. Canara Bank

• 20. Vedanta

• 21. Bank of Baroda

• 22. Union Bank of India

• 23. Axis Bank

• 24. JSW Steel

• 25. Grasim Industries

Annexure 2. Schedule VII activities

• 1. Eradicating hunger, poverty, and malnutrition, ‘promoting health care including preventinve health care’ and sanitation including contribution to the Swach Bharat Kosh set up by the Central Government for the promotion of sanitation and making available safe drinking water. (‘Healthcare’)

• 2. Promoting education, including special education and employment enhancing vocation skills especially amongst children, women, elderly, and the differently abled and livelihood enhancement projects. (‘Education’)

• 3. Promoting gender equality, empowering women, setting up homes and hostels for women and orphans; setting up old age homes, daycare centres, and such other facilities for senior citizens, and measures for reducing inequalities faced by socially and economically backward groups. (‘Gender Equality’)

• 4. Ensuring environmental sustainability, ecological balance, protection of flora and fauna, animal welfare, agroforestry, conservation of natural resources, and maintaining quality of soil, air, and water including contribution to the Clean Ganga Fund set up by the Central Government for rejuvenation of river Ganga. (‘Environmental Sustainability’)

• 5. Protection of national heritage, art, and culture including restoration of buildings and sites of historical importance and works of art; setting up public libraries; promotion and development of traditional art and handicrafts. (‘National Heritage’)

• 6. Measures for the benefit of armed forces veterans, war widows, and their dependents, Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and Central Para Military Forces (CPMF) veterans, and their dependents including widows. (‘Army’)

• 7. Training to promote rural sports, nationally recognized sports, paralympic sports, and olympic sports. (‘Sports’)

• 8. Contribution to the prime minister’s national relief fund (or Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund [PM CARES Fund]) or any other fund set up by the central govt. for socio economic development and relief and welfare of the schedule caste, tribes, other backward classes, minorities, and women. (‘Funds set-up by the Govt’)

• 9. Contribution to incubators or research and development projects in the field of science, technology, engineering, and medicine, funded by the Central Government or State Government or Public Sector Undertaking or any agency of the Central Government or State Government; and

• 10. Contributions to public-funded universities; Indian Institute of Technology (IITs); National Laboratories and autonomous bodies established under Department of Atomic Energy (DAE); Department of Biotechnology (DBT); Department of Science and Technology (DST); Department of Pharmaceuticals; Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH); Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and other bodies, namely Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO); Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR); Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), engaged in conducting research in science, technology, engineering and medicine aimed at promoting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).] (‘R&D’)

• 11. Rural development projects. (‘Rural Development’)

• 12. Slum area development. (‘Slum Development’)

• 13. Disaster management, including relief, rehabilitation, and reconstruction activities. (‘Disaster Management’)