The Rise of ESG in India: Navigating the BRSR Framework

What is BRSR?

The Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR) is SEBI's mandatory ESG reporting framework. Originally limited to top listed entities, it is progressively expanding to cover broader market caps and supply chain partners.

Core Principles of BRSR

The BRSR structure requires detailed disclosures across nine core principles, including:

• Environmental metrics: Energy consumption, carbon footprint, water usage, and waste management.
• Social metrics: Employee welfare, diversity, safety training, and community development projects.
• Governance metrics: Anti-corruption practices, stakeholder engagement, and board diversity.

Moving ESG to Active Workflows

Rather than treats BRSR as a year-end reporting exercise, leading compliance teams integrate ESG data collection into monthly operating cycles. This reduces data retrieval bottlenecks and ensures verified environmental data is ready for auditor scrutiny.