NIFTY 500 is responsible for 45 % of carbon emissions in India: Analysis

The NSE 500, which includes 500 leading companies in India in India, has produced a fingerprint of 1.78 billion tons (BT) of the equivalent of carbon dioxide (CO₂E) in the fiscal year 2022-23, or about 45 % of the country’s emissions, according to the analysis.

The World Bank estimates that the total greenhouse gas emissions in India amounted to 3.9 BT Co₂e in 2021. Even given an increase in the total Indian emissions between 2021 and 2023, it is clear that a large share comes from the corporate sector, it was found an analysis by Devana Varshith, mainly for democratic reforms.

NIFTY 500 companies can be widely classified into two sectors – manufacturing and services sectors. Among these, 60 % of the manufacturing sector, and 40 % of the services sector.

“However, as a share of NIFTy 500 emissions, the manufacturing sector is 97.8 %, while the services sector is only 2.2 %. Industries that have the highest emissions within the manufacturing sector are energy, oil and gas, cement, iron, and minerals,” finds the analysis.

The illogical contribution of the manufacturing sector towards emissions is that emissions from these industries “are difficult to abandon”, because the nature of operations is intense by their nature in energy.

The organization’s level analysis of NIFTY 500 Companies provides interesting visions. In 2022-2023, 415 out of 500 companies represented 1 and 2 emissions. However, only 140 companies reported 3 emissions.

Range 1 emissions are direct emissions such as boilers or ovens used in the manufacturing process. Domain 2 emissions are indirect emissions resulting from the use of electricity purchased from the network. Emissions include 3 emissions of all other indirect emissions that occur due to the organization’s organizational activities.

He added: “This is an important note because it indicates that although the vast majority of NIFTy 500 companies have started calculating their emissions, they face challenges in collecting data on emissions through their value chain.”

The possible reasons for this gap include the large number of suppliers and distributors who do not collect or maintain emissions, as well as the limited participation with small and medium enterprises (SMES) that often lacking appropriate records saving systems

He added, “It is encouraging, starting in 2023, more than 114 companies within NIFTY set 500 net goals before 2050, and many of them are expected to follow. Companies companies are increasingly adopting international standards and standards to reduce emissions.”