DG & CEO, IICA, Shri Gyaneshwar Kumar Singh Urges Shift from Awareness to Institutionalisation of ESG, highlighting ESG as the Moral and Operational Core of Responsible Business

The National Conference on Responsible Business Conduct (NCRBC) 2025, organised by the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, concluded its second day at Taj Palace, New Delhi on 3rd July 2025, with resounding calls for institutionalising ESG principles across sectors, geographies, and value chains. The event witnessed an illustrious gathering of policy leaders, regulators, diplomats, and corporate stalwarts engaging in twelve high-level thematic panels and dialogues across two days.

Delivering the Valedictory Address, Shri Gyaneshwar Kumar Singh, Director General & CEO, IICA, emphasised the need to move from awareness to institutionalisation of ESG. He highlighted that the time has come for ESG to cease being an add-on to corporate strategy and instead be embedded as the moral and operational core of business practice. He thanked partners, industry leaders, and the international community for their active participation and invited all stakeholders to join hands in advancing the Viksit Bharat vision through responsible business.

The proceedings of the second day commenced with the high-level panel on Galvanising Corporate Consensus for Decarbonising India, which featured an eminent panel including Ms. Leena Nandan, Fmr. Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Dr. S. D. Attri, Member (Technical), Commission for Air Quality Management, Dr. Ajay Mathur, Fmr. Director General, International Solar Alliance, Mr. R. R. Rashmi, Distinguished Fellow, TERI, Mr. C. Achalender Reddy, Fmr. Chairperson, National Biodiversity Authority and other esteemed panellists from WRI, Momentum India and WWF India. The session advocated for climate transitions rooted in equity, ecosystem restoration, and sector-specific low-carbon roadmaps.

The session on Advancing Sectoral Adaptation of Responsible Business Practices began with the Key Note Address by Ms. Michiko Miyamoto, Director, ILO South Asia. The session also brought together Shri Praveen Kumar, Former Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship; Mr. Vinnie Mehta, Director General, ACMA; Mr. Greg Garrett, Executive Director, Access to Nutrition Initiative, and Mr. Tarun Vij, Former Country Director, GAIN, Mr Shankar Venkateswaran, Adjunct Faculty IICA and Prof. Garima Dadhich, Head, School of Business Environment, IICA, the panel stressed the need for tailoring ESG models to the Indian context, with a focus on local supply chains, workforce nutrition, and industrial transformation.

The panel on “Aligning BRSR with Global Sustainability Reporting Frameworks” featured senior dignitaries including Keynote Address from Shri Amarjeet Singh, Whole-Time Member, SEBI and Ms. Helen Brand, Chief Executive, ACCA, and esteemed panellists such as Ms. Deeksha Vats, Chief Sustainability Officer, Aditya Birla Group; and Ms. Rama Patel, Chief Ratings Officer, CRISIL, Mr. Vimal Bhatter, DGM, Corporation Finance Department, SEBI, CA (Dr.) Sanjeev Kumar Singhal, Vice Chairman, Sustainability Reporting Standards Board, ICAI, Mr. Narayanan Vaidyanathan, Head of Policy Development, ACCA, among others. Discussions revolved around interoperability of disclosures, assurance systems, and positioning BRSR as India’s sovereign ESG disclosure framework.

In the session on Building Resilient and Sustainable Supply Chains, witnessed an insightful special address by Mr. Bo Beiskjaer, Chief, Resource Mobilisation and Partnerships, UNICEF India, with esteemed panellists such as  Dr. Chi Q Do, Director- Asia Public Policy, Responsible Business Alliance, Ms. Geetanjali Master, Head – Public & Private Partnerships, UNICEF, expert from Schneider Electric, IIM Bangalore, World Benchmarking Alliance and Praxis, explored how supply chains must evolve from cost-centric models to equity-anchored and community-sensitive systems.

The panel on Catalysing Decent Work for Viksit Bharat began with insights from Ms. Githa Rolens, Head, Multinational Enterprises and RBC, ILO, with this significant panel led by Dr. Bhaskar Chatterjee, Former DG & CEO, IICA, engaging with experts such as Ms. Aruna Newton, Global Head – D&I and ESG Governance, Infosys, Ms. Bharti Birla, Enterprise Development Specialist, ILO, Mr. Viraf Mehta, Adjunct Faculty, IICA, Mr. Hiranmay Pandya, President, Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh and Mr. Bhaskar Venegopal, International Justice Mission. Discussions centred on labour dignity, safe workplaces, formalisation, and integration of social equity into ESG matrices.

The concluding Diplomatic Dialogue on Building Resilient and Responsible Economies, initiating with a partner address from Mr. Dennis Larsen, Director, Supply Chain and Innovation, UNICEF, brought together esteemed dignitaries such as Shri Mahaveer Singhvi, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, Mr. Bala Bhaskar, Former Ambassador of India to Norway, H.E.Mr. Mohamed Maliki, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco,  and Mr. Mathias Emil Bengtsson, First Secretary – Trade Policy and Economic Affairs, Embassy of Denmark to reflect on the convergence of ESG and diplomacy, highlighting India’s potential to lead by example in responsible trade, sustainable finance, and climate cooperation.

During the Valedictory Session, Prof. Garima Dadhich, Head, School of Business Environment, IICA, extended heartfelt thanks to Hon’ble Minister of State, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Road Transport and Highways, Government of India, Shri Harsh Malhotra; Member,Prime Minister Economic Advisory Council, Government of India, Shri Sanjeev Sanyal; UNICEF Representative to India, Ms. Cynthia McCaffrey;Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Ms. Deepti Gaur Mukerjee, and Director General & CEO, Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs, Shri Gyaneshwar Kumar Singh and CA. Charanjot Singh Nanda, President, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and other eminent speakers.She also extended thanks to the Conference Partners – UNICEF India, Partners in Change (PiC), The Institute of Charted Accountants of India (ICAI), The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), National Stock Exchange (NSE), The Global Alliance for Improved Alliance (GAIN), ATNi (Access to Nutrition initiative), International Labour Organization (ILO), and Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) for their constant support. Prof. Dadhich further acknowledged the valuable contributions of expert speakers, regulators, delegates, and the dedicated team at the School of Business Environment, IICA whose efforts were instrumental in making the conference a truly collaborative national platform. She highlighted the pivotal role of such multistake holder forums in translating principles into actionable ESG frameworks for businesses of all sizes, particularly MSMEs.

Over the two days, NCRBC 2025 served as a dynamic platform for regulatory foresight, cross-sectoral collaboration, and global alignment. With over 75 stalwarts and expert speakers along with participation from hundreds of organisations, the conference successfully translated India’s responsible business aspirations into a coherent national narrative. As the conference drew to a close, a shared message resonated across sessions, responsible business conduct is not a regulatory burden, but a moral compass and strategic imperative in India’s journey toward a Viksit Bharat by 2047.

Institutionalisation of ESG as core corporate governance, driving mandatory-aligned disclosures and resilient, equitable supply chains. The conference urged embedding ESG institutionalisation into corporate governance as an operational core, tailoring sectoral ESG models for local supply chains, MSMEs and labour formalisation. It recommended aligning BRSR with global sustainability frameworks through interoperability and assurance systems, and advancing equitable decarbonisation, resilient supply chains and sustainable finance via multi stakeholder governance to operationalise responsible business conduct.