Nifty 500 Responsible For 45% Of India’s Carbon Emissions: Analysis

The NSE 500 index, comprising nan starring 500 publically listed companies successful India, collectively produced an emissions footprint of 1.78 cardinal tonnes (Bt) of c dioxide balanced (CO₂e) successful nan fiscal twelvemonth 2022-23, astir 45% of country's full emissions, according to an analysis.

The World Bank’s estimates bespeak that India’s full GHG emissions reached 3.9 Bt CO₂e successful 2021. Even considering an summation successful India’s full emissions betwixt 2021 and 2023, it is evident that a important stock comes from nan firm sector, recovered nan study by Devana Varshith, Team Lead astatine nan Foundation for Democratic Reforms (FDR), a nationalist argumentation deliberation tank.

The Nifty 500 companies tin beryllium broadly categorised into 2 sectors–the manufacturing and services sectors. Out of these, 60% are from nan manufacturing sector, and 40% are from nan services sector.

“However, arsenic a stock of emissions of nan Nifty 500 companies, nan manufacturing assemblage stands astatine 97.8%, while nan work assemblage stands astatine conscionable 2.2%. Industries pinch nan highest emissions wrong nan manufacturing assemblage are power, lipid and gas, cement, iron, metals, and automobiles,” finds nan analysis.

The disproportional publication of nan manufacturing assemblage towards emissions is because nan emissions from these industries are ‘hard to abate,’ arsenic nan quality of nan processes is inherently power intensive.

An organisation-level study of nan reporting by Nifty 500 companies provides absorbing insights. In nan twelvemonth 2022-2023, 415 retired of nan 500 companies accounted for their scope 1 and scope 2 emissions. However, only 140 companies reported their scope 3 emissions.

Scope 1 emissions are nonstop emissions specified arsenic from boilers aliases furnaces utilized successful nan manufacturing process. Scope 2 emissions are indirect emissions resulting from nan usage of energy purchased from nan grid. Scope 3 emissions see each different indirect emissions that hap owed to nan organization’s upstream aliases downstream activities.

“This is an important study arsenic it suggests that while a ample mostly of nan Nifty 500 companies person begun accounting for their emissions, they look challenges successful collecting information connected emissions crossed their worth chain,” it added.

The imaginable reasons for this spread see nan ample number of suppliers and distributors who do not cod aliases support emissions data, arsenic good arsenic constricted engagement pinch Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that often deficiency due record-keeping systems

“It is encouraging that, arsenic of 2023, much than 114 companies wrong nan Nifty 500 person group net-zero targets earlier 2050, and galore much are expected to follow. Corporate companies are progressively adopting world standards and benchmarks for reducing emissions,” it added.

Published on: May 6, 2025 6:01 PM IST