The United Nations has praised India’s business practices, highlighting their focus on sustainability, which is viewed as beneficial for the investment climate in the world’s fifth-largest economy. The commendation came in a report by the Working Group on the issue of “Human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises”, presented at the UN Human Rights Council.
The report specifically lauded India’s Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting (BRSR) initiative, a mandatory disclosure framework for large, listed businesses.
Citing it as a noteworthy example, it said, “the Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting initiative in India, a mandatory disclosure framework for large, listed businesses that includes principles on respecting and promoting human rights and protecting the environment”.
This framework, designed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), aims to integrate sustainable and responsible business practices into corporate operations.
“The Working Group welcomes emerging initiatives that aim to standardize methodologies and increase the transparency of commercial data providers, an area that had been largely unregulated. India and Japan have been among the first jurisdictions to address commercial providers of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) data,” the report stated.
India has expressed its appreciation for the recognition of the BRSR initiative. Indian diplomat Suman Sonkar emphasised the crucial role of corporations and financial actors in enhancing compliance with human rights principles.
“We believe that the corporates and financial actors have an important role in greater compliance of human rights principles by embedding human rights into their policies and strategies and scaling up progress on the implementation of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (BHR),” Sonkar stated.
India has also urged the UN’s working group to propose ways in which a human rights-based approach could encourage states and financial actors to reduce the cost of remittances. Lowering remittance costs could make significant financial resources available to the poor, aiding in poverty alleviation and curbing informal financial transactions. (WION)
