Merely 27% of Indian businesses feel confident about their preparedness to meet Environmental, Social, and Governance requirements, according to India's ESG preparedness survey by Deloitte released on Thursday.

The survey assessed the readiness of 150 organisations for ESG policies, regulations, disclosures, and compliance, with over 70% of them listed on the Indian stock exchanges.

The report underscored the challenges ahead for Indian businesses, wherein commitment to ESG principles is high but there is a significant gap in actual preparedness for implementation. The survey report highlighted the increasing significance of ESG in India, with nearly 88% of organisations perceiving sustainability regulations as directly impacting their businesses.

Over 75% of organisations acknowledged that ESG had become an important agenda in their boardrooms, and 90% believed that ESG reporting would enhance their brand reputation. The report also highlights that socially conscious investors are holding businesses accountable for ESG actions with 75% organisations stating that their investors rate their ESG performance.

Although 83% organisations have designated sustainability leaders, only one-third have both internal ESG champions and sustainability leaders, indicating room for enhancing internal ESG leadership.

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