(And the Gaps We Still Don’t Talk About Enough)
This week, I dropped into the 5th Edition of CII SR Sustainability, ESG & Climate Action Summit Southern Region in Chennai — as a participant quietly tracking how fast (or not) the ESG narrative is maturing in India.
Most of what I heard didn’t surprise me.
Back in January, I had already written about the sustainability trends shaping 2025 — from green finance and circularity to value chain decarbonisation and ESG risk realignment:
Trends Shaping 2025: The Shift Toward a Sustainable Future – ecoHQ
Being in the room validated a lot of what I had forecasted earlier. I didn’t attend all the sessions, but here’s what stood out from the four I did:
Panel 1: Sustainable Supply Chains & Advancing Circularity – The Way Forward
Moderator: Vagish Dixit (Alpla India)
Panelists: Usha Subramaniam (Grundfos Pumps India), Sohanjeet Randhawa (Volvo India), Dr. Bhushan Pachpande (Va Tech Wabag Ltd), Muthusezhiyan N (CII – Green Business Centre), Mathew Jose (Paperman), Srinivasa C K (Toyota Kirloskar Motor)
This panel promised to explore circularity and sustainable supply chains — and while it did surface valuable insights, it also revealed the gaps we continue to gloss over.
Vagish opened with two hard-hitting supply chain statistics:
- 20% of product cost is packaging
- 20% of logistics cost is driven by that packaging
He used Alpla’s fully inline precision manufacturing facility in Silvassa as an example of how circularity and automation can reduce these margins while improving product quality — with zero human intervention from start to finish.
Then came the headline moment:
‘If we replace 110 trillion units of plastic with glass, the world will collapse in six months’.
This, he noted, wasn’t an opinion — but a research-backed finding presented at a plastics conference.
His point?
Circularity is not about swapping materials.
It’s about using less, wasting less, and reimagining design.
He stressed the importance of degrowth, minimalism, mindful consumerism and critically, not letting waste enter the system in the first place.
Usha spotlighted India’s severe water resource imbalance:
‘We are 18% of the world’s population, but hold less than 4% of global freshwater’.
She discussed Grundfos’s work with Carlsberg, where water use per litre of beer dropped:
- From 10L → 2.4L currently, with a 2030 target of 0.5L per litre of beer produced
- The solution? Integrating advanced industrial water reuse systems
She stressed the need to treat wastewater at multiple quality levels and instill a mindset shift among industrial actors to reuse what they used to discard.
Volvo’s approach is rooted in traceability and supplier engagement.
- They’ve appointed a sustainability SPOC for every supplier
- Conduct monthly ESG reviews (after establishing baselines) per supplier — assessing emissions, energy use, packaging material, and toxicity
- Achieved India’s first fossil-free casting certificate, with three more components in the pipeline
- Their packaging is now wood-based, circular, and reusable
- Volvo’s operations are Greenco-certified — reinforcing energy efficiency + high circularity
Dr. Bhushan made a compelling case for rethinking industrial water use — not just as a challenge of scarcity, but as an opportunity for circular value creation.
‘We need to move from simply treating water to recognizing its value as a regenerable, reusable resource‘.
He introduced the idea of “manufactured water” — not artificially created, but water that is treated, purified, and supplied for reuse, particularly in industrial contexts. This isn’t just about conservation — it’s about reimagining treated water as infrastructure.
What makes Wabag inherently sustainable, he argued, is that:
- They are not just solving for water scarcity, but enabling water security
- Their systems are designed for reliable, uninterrupted supply of industrial-grade water — ensuring that large industries have consistent, circular access without overexploiting freshwater reserves
- Their work predates the rise of net-zero, ESG, or even SDG narratives — and stems from a practical understanding that water must be treated not as waste, but as a strategic asset
Importantly, Wabag is the third-largest water operator and desalinator globally, with active operations across four continents.
Key infrastructure examples:
- Koyambedu TTRO (Chennai): treats urban sewage and supplies water to industries
- Ghaziabad plant: another showcase of treating sewage water for industrial repurposing
- Also highlighted their integration of biogas production from sewage sludge, adding energy circularity to the loop
Dr. Bhushan positioned Wabag as a company that’s long practiced resource optimization before it became a buzzword — driven by both technical innovation and operational foresight.
Muthusezhiyan focused on certifications and value-chain emissions:
- Noted that 135+ Indian companies are now Greenco-rated
- Many are voluntarily setting 2040–2047 net-zero targets ahead of India’s 2070 deadline
- Emphasized the push toward Scope 3 emission reductions, especially for OEMs engaging Tier 3 and Tier 4 suppliers through certifications.
- Cited that recycled steel reduces emissions by over 90% compared to virgin steel
He also spoke of The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and NITI Aayog collaborating on a “Frontier Tech Hub” to drive India’s green economy vision by 2050
Mathew shared a personal and entrepreneurial perspective, tracing Paperman’s journey from its origins to its evolving role in India’s waste management ecosystem.
‘When we started Paperman in 2010, it was all about paper waste management — and the belief that 60 kilograms of recycled paper could save one tree’.
He opened with that figure not as a pitch, but as a memory — a data point that sparked a mission.
Over time, paper waste recycling in India has matured into what he described as a self-regulating, decentralized, and robust ecosystem — with high collection rates, widespread community participation, and minimal intervention required from centralized bodies.
Having helped catalyze that change, Paperman is now focusing on the more fragmented and compliance-driven plastic waste ecosystem.
- They work closely with organiaations to meet EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility) requirements
- Offer logistics support, recycled content mapping, and supply chain traceability
- Partner with urban local bodies to improve segregation quality at source — which remains a critical pain point in urban recycling
Srinivasa shared a high-level overview of Toyota’s sustainability strategy — focused on circular design, low-carbon logistics, and operational efficiency.
Key initiatives he highlighted:
- 90% of industrial water use is now recycled or sourced from rainwater
- Waste is segregated into 30 to 60 distinct categories, enabling high-value recovery and upcycling
- Materials like aluminum, copper, resin, and secondary steel are being recovered and redirected, including to non-automotive sectors
- Eco-dealership guidelines and vendor sustainability protocols are in place
- Toyota logistics is pursuing lifecycle zero CO₂ emissions
- Published eco-dealership and sustainability guidelines to upstream and downstream vendors
- In the Lexus line, Toyota has applied cradle-to-cradle design, improved steel yield, and recycled iron, copper, aluminium and resins to reduce 30% virgin material use and also some green engineering which was labelled as circular design principles
In terms of circularity, Srinivasa touched on a few of the 10 R’s — notably:
- Remanufacture (through secondary part recovery)
- Recycle (waste stream optimisation)
- Repurpose (in diverting parts to other sectors)
However, he did not reference the broader 10 R framework that defines a more advanced circular economy — which includes upstream strategies like:
Refuse, Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Repair, Refurbish, Remanufacture, Repurpose, Recycle, and Recover
This omission was notable given Toyota’s deeper work in circularity globally. His presentation reinforced how Toyota is actively embedding circular logic into water, waste, materials, and supply chain processes — even if the higher-order R’s like Refuse, Rethink, and Repair weren’t covered here.
This was one of the more technical, well-evidenced panels. But despite the data, one thing was clear:
The conversation focused heavily on operational circularity — packaging, wastewater, materials — but skipped over broader design, policy, and post-consumer end-of-life strategies.
As I noted in my article on Circularity Strategy:
Circularity is not just a loop. It’s a lens.
One that must account for: Reverse logistics, Informal economies, Community-led repair models and Lifecycle redesign
And the hard decision of ‘should this product exist at all’?
Panel 2: Strengthening ESG Regulations & Compliance
Moderator: Swati Tewari (CII-CESD)
Panelists: Dr. Anirban Ghosh (Mahindra University), Chitra Ravi (Tata Consultancy Services -TCS), Kapil Bansal (EY-Parthenon), Priya Bhaktha (Environment Resource Management -ERM India).
This panel dove into the heart of ESG compliance — but also questioned whether industry is moving beyond checkbox behavior into systemic transformation. It was a sharp conversation about framework convergence, regulatory pressures, and the road from materiality to maturity.
Chitra mentioned that TCS has been reporting under GRI since 2007, setting carbon targets as early as 2012 (for achievement in 2020) — well before many peers
- She emphasized the mounting influence of global ESG regulations:
- India’s BRSR, EU’s CSRD (with its double materiality lens), IFRS S1 & S2, California’s climate laws, and emerging mandates in Malaysia and Australia
- She connected ESG not just to external disclosures, but to employee satisfaction and social sustainability inside the workplace
Kapil brought clarity to the Scope 3 blind spot:
’80–90% of emissions lie in Scope 3. Yet most companies have no baseline’.
- He posed a strategic choice:
‘Are we only responding to carbon tariffs? Or are we building long-term capacity and collaboration for ESG readiness’? - Noted how various industry coalitions are being formed to co-develop sustainability standards and compliance practices across value chains
Priya laid out a clear sequence for effective ESG alignment:
First, arrive at materiality. Then, focus on performance. Only then, align to disclosure frameworks.
She emphasized that framework-chasing without performance clarity leads to shallow compliance.
Some key regulatory and financial signals she highlighted:
- GRI is aligning with IFRS, helping bridge voluntary and mandatory standards
- India’s BRSR is evolving to include green credit mechanisms
- SEBI’s push for Scope 3 accountability is forcing capital flows into value-chain decarbonisation — not just tier-1 compliance
- She emphasized redesigning enterprise risk matrices with sustainability at the core
- Key regulatory signals she flagged:
- GRI aligning with IFRS
- India’s Green Credit program being embedded in BRSR
- CBAM preparedness and SEBI pushing Scope 3 responsibility onto listed companies (including NASSCOM and BSE entities)
She also highlighted two critical developments shaping India’s climate finance landscape:
- India’s Climate Finance Taxonomy is being developed by the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA)
- RBI’s Climate Disclosure Framework (in development)
Dr. Anirban brought the big-picture systems view — challenging both the policy ecosystem and internal ESG ownership structures.
- Called for incentives over penalties to enable broad ESG adoption, especially for MSMEs
- Proposed building open-source ESG stacks, starting with sectors like auto and energy
He Introduced the concept of pollution insurance — a new financial instrument that could transfer environmental risk into measurable, insured outcomes.
And shared a key business case from Mahindra:
One ESG-aligned project helped Mahindra secure ₹240 crore in green finance, while delivering ₹140 crore in direct cost savings — proving ESG is both a financial and operational lever.
- He noted that companies are embracing product lifecycle management and enterprise-wide sustainability assessments, but these still tend to over-index on the environment
He also advocated a reframing:
We’re moving from Net Zero to Just Transition — and most organisations still over-focus on the ‘E’ while under-addressing the ‘S’ and ‘G’.
He emphasised the importance of:
- Product lifecycle management
- Organization-level ESG assessments
- Embedding inclusivity and equity into decarbonization plans
- The missing link? Equity, inclusion, and justice for communities at risk of being left behind
This last point builds on themes I’ve explored in depth across ecoHQ’s strategy series — especially on social lifecycle assessment (S-LCA), inclusive transitions, and the power dynamics baked into ESG frameworks:
Part 6: Circularity Strategy
Part 5: Beyond Greenwashing
Part 4: Inclusive Transitions
Part 3: Materiality, Metrics & Justice
Part 2: ESG & Power Structures
Part 1: Systems-Led Sustainability
Take Away from the panel:
ESG frameworks are catching up. But frameworks aren’t enough.
What we need now is alignment with intention, design with empathy, and capital with consequence.
ESG compliance isn’t just a disclosure game. It’s a system lens — if we choose to use it that way.
Panel 3: Embedding Social Responsibility in Sustainability & ESG
Moderator: Vijaykrishnan Venkatesan (Kennametal India)
Panelists: Anju Mary Kuruvilla (Danfoss Industries), Sivaranjani Subramanian (Environmental Management Centre- EMC), Arun Krishnamurthy (Environmentalist Foundation of India), D V Venkatagiri (Puthiya Thalaimurai Foundation)
This panel was a much-needed reset. It brought the often-overlooked “S” in ESG to the center — not as a social report section, but as infrastructure for long-term resilience, inclusion, and human dignity. No frameworks, just truth.
Vijaykrishnan set the tone with a reminder: many organizations have long embedded social responsibility into their DNA — long before ESG entered corporate vocabulary.
He cited examples like Toyota, Tata, Danfoss, and Daimler, noting that companies that have stood the test of time are those that invested in social values and created better citizens, not just better balance sheets.
But he didn’t let the room off the hook:
‘Some companies are visionaries. Others need to be nudged by policy. But even the most ethical companies have people who violate those very values. So how are we living what we preach’?
Arun brought a grounded, field-informed perspective rooted in environmental and civic participation.
He reframed the idea of responsibility from the bottom up:
- Highlighted the role of individual social responsibility as a foundation for ESG
- Argued that planet literacy and civic consciousness should be cultivated at all levels — not just among leadership for diversity, equity and inclusion.
- An audience member shared how a beach cleanup was undercut by plastic-laden breakfasts — exposing a gap between ESG optics and action. Arun noted that without values embedded across all levels, sustainability remains superficial.
Anju challenged the audience with a provocative opening:
‘How many genders do you know’?
Most said two, maybe three. She followed up:
“Globally, 143 gender identities are recognized — and counting.”
But this wasn’t about identity politics — it was about contextualising inclusion.
She pointed out the cultural dissonance that arises when global DEI frameworks are copy-pasted into Indian settings:
- In some countries, employees over 70 can choose to work or retire. In India, mandatory retirement policies create friction in intergenerational collaboration.
- At Danfoss, 70-year-olds and 20-year-olds work in the same teams — raising questions of intergenerational respect, inclusion, and employee satisfaction.
- She reminded the audience that what may be “progressive” abroad can be a culture shock in India if applied without cultural fluency.
She then expanded the lens:
‘In India, DEI is often equated only with women’s inclusion. But that’s a narrow and incomplete lens’.
Sivaranjani built on this by linking social inclusion to business model innovation:
- She asked a critical question:
“Are we embedding inclusion into the design of our business models — or just trying to patch it in through HR?”
Venkatagiri brought a grassroots and regional development perspective:
- Emphasised dignity and fairness in the way companies treat not only employees but vendors, partners, and community stakeholders — especially across Tier 2 and Tier 3 geographies
Collective Pushback on Token DEI
All the panelists openly challenged the narrow interpretation of DEI in Indian corporate culture. They emphasized that real DEI spans:
- Disability, caste, religion, class, and ethnicity
- Educational and experiential diversity
- Neurodiversity and mental health inclusion
- Age and intergenerational equity
- Regional, linguistic, and geographic identity
- Socioeconomic background — privilege vs. disadvantage
- Lived experience across social and professional contexts
They asked the room:
“Are we merely doing the legal minimum that Indian law mandates — or are we building truly inclusive, intergenerational, and equitable organizations?”
This wasn’t a DEI panel. It was a systems conversation.
And the takeaway was clear:
ESG is only as strong as the humanity we design it with.
Panel 4: Innovative Green Financing – Unlocking Capital for Sustainability
Moderator: Manish Ranjan (Hewlett Packard Enterprise)
Panelists: Devarshi Munshi (DBS Bank), Sudha Meiyappan (auctusESG), Shubhi Goel (Parijata)
This panel followed the money — but more importantly, it followed the risk. Not just climate risk, but financing risk, transition risk, and the risk of being left behind in a rapidly greening global economy.
DBS, the largest foreign bank in India, is already embedding ESG metrics deep into its lending operations.
- They’ve begun measuring financed emissions directly in their P&L — an emerging standard globally that tracks how much of a bank’s capital is actively enabling green transitions
This kind of introspection marks a shift — from ESG as borrower-side compliance to ESG as lender-side accountability.
Sudha opened the panel by outlining what banks and investors prioritize when assessing ESG lending opportunities:
‘It always starts with risk. Risk aversion. Risk management’.
She highlighted:
- The rise of sustainability-linked loans (SLLs), where the borrower’s ESG performance directly affects the terms of finance
- The growing pool of transition finance, especially to help hard-to-abate sectors (like steel) decarbonize without collapsing their operations
- SEBI’s Scope 3 mandates for NASSCOM and BSE-listed companies, which will push transition finance deeper into the supply chain
I asked her a sharp one:
‘If you’re giving transition finance to industries like steel to move away from fossil fuels, how do you factor in climate transition risk — especially the risk of creating stranded assets’?
Her response:
- The purpose of transition finance is precisely to mitigate that risk — by enabling a smoother, phased transformation
- Banks want reassurance that borrowers will:
- Manage and repurpose stranded assets effectively
- Minimise disruption during transition
- Protect themselves from physical climate risks (e.g. floods, droughts, storms)
- Possibly even insure against extreme weather risks
Shubhi’s focus was twofold: carbon aggregation and the future of green credits.
- She described how organizations are aggregating smallholder farmers and turning their sustainable practices into tradable carbon credits
- She explained that green credits, once formalized by Indian policy, could work both at the organizational and individual level
I asked:
‘If carbon credits are being generated by aggregating smallholder communities, will green credits work the same way — as employer-mediated reward systems?’
Her response clarified a growing distinction:
- While some companies may distribute green credits to employees for sustainable actions,
- Green credits will also be available directly to individuals — for planet-positive behaviours under the government’s Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) initiative
- Think discounted green fuels, tax credits, or redeemable incentives — without needing an employer as an intermediary
The final takeaway was that:
Green capital isn’t just looking for ESG reports. It’s looking for businesses that understand risk, resilience, and reinvention. ESG is now a precondition to creditworthiness.
Final Takeaway:
ESG is evolving from paperwork → to power structures.
From what we report → to how we operate.
From who we appease → to what we activate.
What we do with that evolution — individually, institutionally, and systemically — is what’ll define the next decade of climate action.