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heat waves, melting glaciers and polar ice The other need of the hour is carbon
caps, and rising sea levels all raise red management across the value chain in
flags about global warming. Thus, the order to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG)
writing on the wall is clear: climate emissions. If corporates collaboratively
change is now a reality that can’t afford engage with their suppliers (who are
to be overlooked. usually the SMEs and MSEs), it will help
mitigate the GHG emissions of around 80-
85 percent of India’s industry.
A holistic approach / A shared effort
While the focus on renewable energy is
important, India must take a holistic India Inc’s efforts / Corporate India
approach towards climate change. The and sustainability
sectors which predominantly contribute While more Indian companies need to
towards carbon emissions are transport, proactively chalk out their carbon
agriculture, power generation and management policies, there are those
distribution, construction, and industry. that have stood out for their CSR efforts.
The key to effective carbon management Take the ITC Group, for example, which
in each of these sectors is cooperation has been a carbon positive company for
between various stakeholders, as well as 11 successive years. It has over 200,000
a roadmap with definite targets and a hectares of plantations which help in
timeframe. capturing carbon: 5.1 million tonnes of
carbon dioxide were sequestered in 2016
alone.
Take the industrial sector, for instance,
where the main stakeholders are the In 2016, Mahindra and Mahindra Limited
corporates or businesses, the became the first Indian company to
government, small and medium announce its internal carbon price of $10
enterprises (SMEs) and micro and small per tonne of carbon emissions. This was
enterprises (MSEs). As part of their in line with its business commitment to
sustainability efforts, many corporates reduce its GHG emissions by 25 percent
have begun setting voluntary emission over the next three years. Other
reduction targets. A report by Carbon initiatives include an investment in 4.2
Disclosure Project (CDP) states that MW of wind power and the use of
around 80 percent of India’s big magnetic induction, LED lighting
companies have emission reduction and technology and waste heat recovery
renewable energy targets in place, and systems at its plants.
have put up an internal price on carbon Infosys has one of the largest energy
as a part of their risk mitigation efficiency retrofit programmes in the
strategies. world to its credit. The IT firm invested
What would prove more efficient is to $60 million to retrofit existing systems in
have consortium of Indian companies, 12 campuses with energy-efficient ones.
which could collaborate with the Infosys also relies on renewable energy
government to follow stringent carbon for its energy needs: it has installed 12
management policies and carbon pricing MW of solar photovoltaic systems across
activity. The government could play a key its campuses. The company’s energy
role by setting targets, framing guidelines efficiency measures led to a reduction of
or providing incentives for companies to around 59 percent across its scope 1 and
invest in environment-friendly 2 emissions.
technologies.
