ESG Champions of India 2024

ESG Champions of India 2024 | 11 [ ESG AND ITS RELEVANCE IN THE CURRENT SCENARIO ] BRSR CORE REPORTING MANDATE (TIMELINES): BRSR Reporting BRSR Core Reporting BRSR Core Reporting – Reasonable Assurance BRSR Core Reporting – Value Chain Disclosures (Comply- or-Explain Basis) BRSR Core Reporting – Limited Value Chain Disclosures (Comply- or-Explain Basis) FY23 Top 1,000 listed companies FY24 Top 1,000 listed companies Top 1,000 listed companies Top 150 listed companies FY25 Top 1,000 listed companies Top 1,000 listed companies Top 250 listed companies Top 250 listed companies FY26 Top 1,000 listed companies Top 1,000 listed companies Top 500 listed Top 250 listed companies Top 250 listed companies FY27 Top 1,000 listed companies Top 1,000 listed companies Top 1,000 listed Top 250 listed companies Top 250 listed companies ESG INVESTING GAINING GROUND Growing importance of ESG has stimulated increased investor interest, which has, in turn, led to a wide range of ESG-focused investment products including Exchange-traded Funds (ETFs), mutual funds, bonds etc. Research indicates that ESG- focused equity funds in India have soared from $330 million in 2019 to $1.3 billion in June 2023. The S&P BSE 100 ESG Index closed at 355.51 points at the end of 2023 with an annualized 5-year total return of 17.30% as compared with an annualized 5-year total return of 16.51% clocked by the S&P BSE Sensex. The Nifty 100 ESG index has also outperformed (18.8%) the Nifty 100 (17.9%) over the same period. The Government of India also announced plans to issue sovereign green bonds to finance public sector companies in their initiatives to reduce carbon footprint. Recently, Vadodara Municipal Corporation raised ` 1 billion through green municipal bonds, first of its kind in the continent. On the other side, increased investor interest towards ESG has also led companies to adopt sustainable practices and become more transparent about their ESG activities and performances. This has helped investors in scanning companies with strong ESG parameters in order to take informed investment decisions, which is, in turn, encouraging more companies to build on their ESG scorecards. Overall, research indicates that financially successful companies which also have strong fundamentals, and which integrate ESG into their growth strategies have been able to outperform their peers. Even as ESG investing gains ground, investors are demanding more information on ESG performance of companies in their portfolios. This has led to development of international ESG standards and guidelines, which makes it easier around the world to navigate through the information available and compare performances of different companies. Overall, the emergence and evolution of ESG investing have been driven by a growing importance and understanding of environmental, social, and governance factors. With investors continuing to demand more information about the ESG performance of the companies they are investing in, ESG as a principle is likely to gain traction on a massive scale overall, going forward. Dun & Brads reet