With ESG compliance reporting getting attention like never before, a ‘National Conference on ESG for Industry Transformation: Environmental – Social – Governance for Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ is being held on November 29 at the Jio World Convention Centre, BKC, Mumbai.
As pressure mounts on companies from regulators and investors to follow Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices, it has become imperative for the corporate sector to step up its game.
Earlier this year the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) made the Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR) mandatory for the country’s top 1,000 listed companies beginning FY 2022-23. New norms and guidelines now require companies to report their sustainability-related initiatives. A keen interest by investors in companies with sharp focus on sustainability, climate action and GHG emission reduction is accelerating the ESG discourse. Such developments give an opportunity to companies to switch to sustainable and resilient business practices and to report in accordance with reporting frameworks like BRSR.
With ESG compliance reporting getting attention like never before, a ‘National Conference on ESG for Industry Transformation: Environmental – Social – Governance for Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ is being held on November 29 at the Jio World Convention Centre, BKC, Mumbai. The conference is being organised by the National Productivity Council (NPC), Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoC&I) and Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change jointly with Indian Potash Ltd as the industry partner.
“NPC under DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, is pursuing the goal of net zero set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at COP26. NPC is started a new service for Indian corporates in the ESG space by helping them comply with the BRSR mandate of SEBI,” says Sundeep Kumar Nayak, Director General, NPC.
He adds, “NPC has named this service as SAPTAPADI framework to re-emphasise Indian corporates’ holistic commitment to sustainable development. This framework will be one of the aspects of deliberation in the National Conference on ESG for Industry Transformation at BKC Mumbai on 29 November 2022.”
The conference is likely to see participation from the top 1,000 listed firms and more than 100 senior level executives and business leaders from various organisations. Industry experts and various heads will discuss integration of ESG into company strategies for competitiveness, sustainability and resilience. Jiwesh Nandan, Senior Advisor, NPC, “We are trying to bring all possible stakeholders under one roof for a day to discuss various aspects of ESG, including financing.” He adds, “All over the world, we are seeing how ESG is evolving. So it is very important for corporates to deliberate upon it. NPC looks at it as a big opportunity. A part of that seminar will also be about NPC and how we are very equipped to help the corporates file their mandatory returns that they need to file from next year.” NPC is planning to hold two more similar events.
The participants including professionals, implementers, practitioners and senior-middle management of organisations/companies/industries engaged in ESG and sustainability functions will participate in discussions aiming to increase awareness of various aspects of sustainability.
They will have a dialogue on reporting and compliance under the BRSR framework and also share good practices in corporate governance, socio-economic measures and resource efficiency. The experts will analyse problems and challenges faced by various industries and spotlight various ways in which Indian businesses and industries can move forward with their industrial transformation and emerge as global sustainability leaders. The conference will keenly look at integrating ESG agenda into business strategy.
The day-long conference will begin with the inaugural session featuring Sundeep Kumar Nayak, Director General, NPC; Madhabi Puri Buch, Chairperson, SEBI and other prominent leaders. It will be followed by a session titled ‘The Regulatory Framework and Ways Forward'. To be led by SEBI and NPC, it will highlight ESG investing, measurements, policy, framework, reporting and certification. This group will see participation by K D Bhardwaj, Group Head, NPC; Santosh Kumar, Regional Director, Western Region Ministry of Corporate Affairs; and Rajinder Singh Ahuja, Head, HSE & Sustainability, Vedanta Ltd.
In another panel, Kaushik Shaparia, CEO, Deutsche Bank; Priya Subbaraman, Chief Regulatory Officer, National Stock Exchange; Sanjiv Navangul, Managing Director & CEO, Bharat Serums and Vaccines (BVS); and G Saravanan, Group Head, NPC, will focus on reframing of ESG steps by companies as a competitive advantage to deliver value and draw investment.
The closing session on ‘Integrating ESG into Business Strategy’ has an impressive array of speakers lined up. The speakers include Sundeep Kumar Nayak of NPC; S. Ganeshan, Vice President - Agri Policies and Outreach Corporate Affairs, UPL Limited; Pankaj Mehta, Managing Director, Carrier Transicold; Amitabh Chaudhry, Chairman, AXIS Bank; Suchetana Ray, Editor, Outlook Business; Leena Nandan, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change; and Arundhati Chattopadhyay, Regional Head, NPC.
The NPC, an independent agency within the Ministry of Commerce & Industry of the Government of India, was founded in 1958 with the goal of promoting a culture of productivity throughout all sectors of the economy through consulting, training and research. In order to promote ESG as a crucial component of business operations and make businesses sustainable, competitive and resilient while being ESG/BRSR compliant, NPC has developed its own original seven step strategy (SAPTAPADI).
NPC intends to familiarise participating organisations with various facets of sustainability and its importance to business and future investment. With this objective, it has been organising conclaves as part of pan India ESG series. Till now, NPC has held two conclaves in New Delhi and Chennai.