Fourth IICA National Conference on Responsible Business Conduct 2026
The Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA), an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, organized the fourth edition of the National Conference on Responsible Business Conduct (NCRBC) 2026 in New Delhi. The two-day conference, themed "ESG-led Transformation for Viksit Bharat," was hosted by IICA's School of Business Environment and featured participation from over 350 senior corporate leaders, ESG professionals, policymakers, and international delegates.
Key Addresses and Strategic Emphasis
Shri Nitin Gupta, Chairperson of the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA), delivered a special address emphasizing that Responsible Business Conduct is integral to the vision of Viksit Bharat and fosters competitive enterprises, trusted markets, inclusive growth, and environmental sustainability. He noted India's significant progress in strengthening sustainability disclosures but stressed the need to focus on enhancing their quality, reliability, and decision usefulness. Gupta emphasized that sustainability information must be relevant, comparable, evidence-based, and verifiable, supported by robust methodologies, reliable source systems, and effective internal controls. He stated that sustainability information should be subjected to the same discipline and rigor that underpin financial reporting and audit, including principles of documentation, traceability, reconciliation, control ownership, evidence retention, professional skepticism, and independent examination. Gupta also underscored the need for a proportionate and pragmatic approach to sustainability reporting while leveraging technology and strengthening institutional capacities across value chains and among MSMEs.
Shri Gyaneshwar Kumar Singh, Director General and CEO of IICA, stated in his welcome address that India's aspiration to become a USD 30 trillion economy by 2047 requires Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles to move beyond regulatory compliance and become integral to the country's economic development model. He highlighted India's journey from the Voluntary Guidelines on Corporate Social Responsibility issued in 2009 to the mandatory Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting (BRSR) framework introduced in 2021. Singh noted that Section 166(2) of the Companies Act, 2013 had incorporated the principle of stakeholder primacy into Indian corporate law well before it gained wider global recognition. Describing India's evolving sustainability landscape as a transition from "ESG 1.0" to "ESG 2.0," he observed that ESG is emerging as a strategic driver of long-term enterprise value, effective risk management, and business resilience. Singh outlined priorities for the next phase, including integrating sustainability into board-level decision-making, strengthening legal and regulatory frameworks for sustainability data assurance to address greenwashing risks, and leveraging emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence to enhance sustainability data quality, traceability, and transparency across value chains.
International Perspectives and Additional Contributions
Mr. Jesper Moller, Deputy Representative (Programmes) of UNICEF India, emphasized integrating child rights into core business strategy rather than treating them as philanthropic concerns, noting India is home to over 400 million children who represent its future workforce and consumers. Ms. Helen Brand, Chief Executive of ACCA, speaking virtually, reaffirmed ACCA's partnership with IICA on sustainable business practices and cited ACCA's Global Talent Trends Report 2026 showing that a growing majority of finance professionals worldwide want careers with positive social impact, with employer reputation on social and human rights issues becoming increasingly important in employment decisions.
Professor Garima Dadhich, Head of the School of Business Environment at IICA, delivered the concluding address, describing responsible business conduct as essential to Viksit Bharat and calling for sustainability to be viewed as a growth foundation rather than compliance exercise. She outlined three guiding philosophies for the conference: generational responsibility, cultural anchoring in the Rig Vedic call for collective action ("Sangachhadhwam Samvadadhwam Sam Vo Manamsi Janatam"), and alignment with India's G20 vision of "One Earth, One Family, One Future." She noted the conference deliberations are anchored in the Union Budget 2026–27, which placed green growth, climate transition, and sustainable infrastructure at the center of the nation's fiscal priorities, and referenced the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance's call for stronger ESG frameworks, sharper disclosures, and more rigorous impact assessments.
High-Level Panel Discussion on Governance
A High-Level Panel discussion on "ESG, Governance and Board-Level Disclosures" moderated by Professor Garima Dadhich featured several prominent speakers. Shri Amarjeet Singh, Whole-Time Member of SEBI, cautioned against rushing to converge with global standards, advocating that India should chart its own glide path suited to its development stage rather than align hastily with international frameworks. Shri Arun Kumar Singh, Chairman of ONGC, stated that over-promising and under-delivering is "far better" than under-promising and called on regulators to reward companies for ambition and intent rather than penalize them for falling short, emphasizing that intent and trust play key roles in governance. Dr. Arunabha Ghosh, CEO of CEEW, noted that ESG is often treated as a "headache" rather than opportunity, pointing to an estimated USD 4 trillion investment opportunity in India's green economy. Shri Shailesh Pathak, Senior Advisor at NSE, stated that capital "goes to where it sees opportunity, but stays where it has trust," describing the Social Stock Exchange as a transparent bridge between capital and social enterprises. Shri George Varghese, Managing Director of Kirloskar Industries Limited, shared how tighter emission norms, initially seen as a cost burden, ultimately opened international markets for his company's products. CA Pramod Jain, Chairman of the Sustainability Reporting Standards Board at ICAI, noted that India has become one of the first countries to make ESG assurance mandatory rather than voluntary, lending board disclosures the same credibility as financial statements.
Conference Structure and Partnerships
The conference was held with support from partner organizations including UNICEF, Partners in Change, and ACCA as Lead Partners; ICAI and the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) as Associate Partners; and UN Women, CEEW, WRI India, and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) as Session Partners. The second day of the conference was scheduled to feature High-Level Panels on sector-specific guidelines for strengthening ESG integration, responsible value chains across global and domestic supply networks, mainstreaming ESG in MSMEs for competitive and inclusive growth, strengthening sectoral ESG adoption beyond BRSR, and reenvisioning environmental metrics in ESG reporting frameworks, concluding with a valedictory session.