CSR and sustainability reporting practices in India: an in-depth content analysis of top-listed companies

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to comprehensively analyze the corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability reporting (SR) practices of Indian companies in terms of disclosure quantity and quality, and to investigate the differences in SR practices by SR dimension, industry, ownership structure, firm size and profitability. Design/methodology/approach Data are collected from annual reports/business responsibility reports (BRR)/CSR/sustainability reports of 60 top-listed companies in India. A comprehensive sustainability reporting index is developed. Content analysis technique is used. Inter-coder reliability is established. Findings Altogether, 18 items of the index are not disclosed by the majority of companies in India. SR quality is found significantly lower than the SR quantity. Moreover, SR practices significantly differ by dimension/category, industry-type and firm-size but are not influenced by ownership structure. However, the study fails to establish any conclusive relationship between SR and profitability. Practical implications The present study has several implications for corporates, practitioners, policymakers and stakeholders. The findings underscore the need for amendments in the Global Reporting Initiative guidelines and BRR framework of the Securities and Exchange Board of India to avoid patchy disclosures and ensure complete reporting by companies. Originality/value This study is among the foremost studies in India evaluating SR practices of top-listed companies in the wake of the mandatory BRR requirement from a quantitative as well as qualitative perspective using a multidimensional index.

CSR Practices in Polish and Spanish Stock Listed Companies: A Comparative Analysis

“…The conducted research showed that the percentage of disclosures in CSR reporting in the economic, environmental, and social categories for the Petrol and Power industry was significantly higher than the percentage of disclosure for the other industries. These conclusions were consistent, e.g., with the research conducted by Aggarwal and Singh [38] in India; by Gamerschlag, Möller, and Verbeeten [46] in Germany; and Reverte [44] in Spain. The results were inconsistent with the research conducted by Branco and Rodrigues [4] in Portugal.…”

“…The analysis also showed that the percentage of disclosures for companies from the Financial Services industry was significantly higher than for companies from the Consumer Goods industry. In previous research, companies from the Financial Services industry were often excluded from the sample [32,38,44,50] mainly because of the special accounting regulations applicable to them [44,50]. The results of our research in this area were inconsistent with Tagesson, Blank, Broberg, and Collin [37] and with the results of the research of Gamerschlag, Möller, and Verbeeten, [46].…”

“…A relationship between CSR disclosure and industry was found in Sweden [16,37], India [38], Germany [46], and Pakistan [43].…”

“…The aim of the paper was to comprehensively analyze the corporate social responsibility and sustainability reporting practices of Indian companies in terms of disclosure quantity and quality, and to investigate the differences in SR practices by the SR dimension, industry, ownership structure, firm size, and profitability [38]. The aim of the paper was to evaluate the quality of non-financial information in the United Kingdom and Italy before the implementation of the EU Directive, and to investigate which factors affected the quality of non-financial information in the comparison between the UK and Italy.…”

Corporate Environmental Disclosure in India: An Analysis of Multinational and Domestic Agrochemical Corporations

“…Public awareness of corporate environmental impacts has increased over the years [179,180], in turn increasing the expectations of society for enhanced corporate responsibility [181]. In addition, there have been regulatory changes such as those associated with the Companies Act 2013, as well changes in external certification and codes and guidelines [182,183], which encourage improvement in CED. Overall, when society's expectations are higher, it is anticipated that corporations increase disclosure in order to maintain legitimacy.…”