The document discusses the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework introduced by the United Nations. It notes that the SDGs, consisting of 17 goals adopted by 193 countries in 2015, provide a holistic framework to guide global sustainable development and transformation until 2030. For India, the SDGs are highly relevant as they can help address many of India's critical development challenges. The government will need to continue supporting policies that encourage innovation and entrepreneurship to further accelerate progress on the SDGs. Achieving the scale of transformation envisioned by the SDGs in India will require collaboration between diverse stakeholders.

1. Sustainable
Development Goals
Broadening the horizon
for India’s growth and
transformation
Global Compact
Network India

2. The 11th
National Convention of the Global Compact
Network India (GCNI) comes at an opportune time
– a time when nations across the globe are coming
together to collaborate and identify ways to achieve
sustainable growth while creating positive impact
for the society at large. With almost a sixth of the
world’s population and as an emerging super power,
India is uniquely positioned to contribute towards this
global sustainable growth agenda. However, there are
a number of challenges which we need to overcome
to achieve sustainable growth. There is a continuous
need to identify innovative ways to address challenges
related to poverty, hunger, ecological imbalances and
resource shortages.
Given the diverse nature of challenges in the way
of sustainable growth, there is a need for a holistic
framework which stakeholders can leverage to shape
and drive their growth agenda. The Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) introduced by the United
Nations and formally adopted by 193 member nations
in 2015 provide such a holistic framework. These 17
goals are expected to set the world’s development
agenda until 2030. In this context, the importance of
Global Compact anchoring this convention around the
SDGs cannot be over-emphasized.
As we move ahead with our growth story, it is
important for us to embrace the SDG framework
to shape our transformation journey. The first step
in this direction is to understand what the SDG
framework is all about. That’s where I believe this
report can be immensely helpful for stakeholders
such as government, departments such as NITI Aayog,
businesses, NGOs, institutional players, academia
as well as citizens. The report not only demystifies
Foreword
the SDG framework, but also provides a deep-dive
view of aspects such as how India is performing
on each SDG currently, illustrative policies to help
drive implementation of SDGs in India, case studies
to illustrate how private sector can help accelerate
adoption of SDGs etc. I genuinely believe that the
insights captured in this report can help different
stakeholders seamlessly understand and adopt the
SDG framework.
I would like to congratulate Global Compact Network
India and its knowledge partner Accenture Strategy
for creating this awareness report on SDGs. We are
hopeful that this report will pave the way forward
for India to continue its march towards sustainable
growth and inclusive development through low
carbon pathways.
(Dinesh K Sarraf)
Chairman & Managing Director,
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited

3. Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs) – a holistic framework to
shape global transformation
Figure 1: United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals
“We are living in times when there is a felt urgency
among India’s industry players to execute rigorous
actions in the path of sustainable development.
SDGs have helped define a direction to channel such
action, where business can work towards employment
creation, low carbon business practices, and plough
growth into sustained development practices based
on lasting partnerships.”
Lalit Kumar Gupta
Managing Director & CEO, Essar Oil Limited
In September 2000, various global leaders assembled
at the United Nations’ Millennium Summit and
committed their nations to support 8 development
goals. These goals, better known as Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs), were intended to address
acute human challenges such as poverty and hunger,
while also promoting other basic needs such as right
to education, gender equality and environmental
sustainability. In addition to adopting MDGs, global
leaders also identified specific time-bound targets and
indicators, which were expected to shape the world’s
development agenda for the period 2000 – 2015.
India has come a long way in embracing MDGs and
has made significant progress on a number of goals,
such as halving poverty rates from 1990 levels,
ensuring gender parity in primary school enrolment,
reversing incidence of HIV/AIDS, and reducing malaria
and TB related deaths. However, there still are areas
such as hunger, child mortality and gender equality in
employment, where there is a significant opportunity
for improvement. Likewise, a majority of nations
managed to make progress on a few goals, with
further improvement opportunities in other areas.
This paved way for the development of SDGs. 1
SDGs are the new set of
transformative and universal
development goals
SDGs were conceptualized at the UN Sustainable
Development Conference in Rio de Janerio in June,
2012. These goals were intended to carry forward the
initial momentum built by MDGs, with a relatively
expanded scope of development. In particular, SDGs
are a set of 17 goals with 169 underlying targets and
304 indicators. These goals were formally adopted by
193 member nations of the UN in September 2015
and are expected to set the world’s development
agenda for 2015 – 2030. 2
The Government of India has already demonstrated
its commitment to SDGs through rollout of initiatives
such as “SabkaSath, SabkaVikas” (Together with All,
Development for All). The Government has also clearly
stated that the first claim on development belongs
to the poor. Improved sanitation, health, education,
financial inclusion, security and gender equality are
some of the key goals that the government plans to
focus on. Moreover, the budget for 2016 has also
been framed in alignment with the broad objectives
laid out by SDGs.
“While the health impacts of climate change are
global, it’s imperative that India, accountable for
1/7th of the global population, acts fervently to
save our planet’s future. Sanofi, an official partner
of COP21, is working on awareness efforts through
partnerships and solutions to prevent and respond
to diseases like dengue or malaria that are indirect
health impacts resulting from climate change.
Additionally, across all our industrial and R&D sites,
we aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20%
between 2010 and 2020.”
Shailesh Ayyangar
Managing Director – Sanofi India Limited
Vice President – South Asia, Sanofi
While SDGs are often perceived as an extension and
evolution of MDGs, there are some fundamental
differences in the way SDGs have been rolled out:
• SDGs are all-inclusive: SDGs are all-encompassing
and all countries are expected to work towards the
implementation of global goals and achieving
underlying targets.
• SDGs target complete elimination of fundamental
challenges: While MDGs were designed to
initiate progress, SDGs are designed to achieve
a statistical “zero” on challenges such as hunger,
poverty, preventable child deaths and other targets.
• SDGs recognize the critical role of partnerships
for successful implementation: SDGs have been
designed to rely on partnerships and collaborations
for successful implementation. In particular, SDGs
recognize the critical role that businesses must play
in achieving them.

4. Figure 2: SDGs – Broad objectives
“End hunger,
achieve food
security and
improved nutrition
and promote
sustainable
agriculture”
Promoting sustainable
agricultural practices,
improving livelihoods
and capacities of
small scale famers*
allowing equal access
to land, technology and
markets.
“Ensure healthy
lives and promote
well-being for all”
Committing to end
the epidemics of
AIDS, tuberculosis,
malaria and other
communicable diseases
by 2030. Achieving
universal health
coverage, and provide
access to safe and
effective medicines
and vaccines for all.
“Ensure inclusive
and equitable
quality education
and promote
lifelong learning
opportunities for
all”
Ensuring that all
children complete free
primary and secondary
schooling by 2030.
Providing equal access
to affordable vocational
training, and to
eliminate gender
and wealth disparities.
“End poverty in
all its forms and
everywhere”
Targeting those
living in vulnerable
situations, increasing
access to basic
resources and services,
and supporting
communities affected
by conflict and
climate-related
disasters.
“Reduce inequality
within and among
countries”
Improving the regulation
and monitoring of
financial markets and
institutions, encouraging
development assistance
and foreign direct
investment to regions
where the need is
greatest. Facilitating
the safe migration and
mobility of people is
also key to bridging the
widening divide.
“Make cities
inclusive, safe,
resilient and
sustainable”
Making cities safe and
sustainable, ensuring
access to safe and
affordable housing,
and upgrading slum
settlements. Investing
in public transport,
creating green public
spaces and improving
urban planning and
management in a
way that is both
participatory and
inclusive.
“Ensure sustainable
consumption
and production
patterns”
Halving per capita
global food waste at the
retailer and consumer
levels, creating more
efficient production and
supply chains. This can
help with food security
and shift us towards a
more resource efficient
economy.
“Build resilient
infrastructure,
promote
sustainable
industrialization
and foster
innovation”
Bridging the digital
divide to ensure
equal access to
information and
knowledge, and as a
consequence foster
innovation and
entrepreneurship.
“Ensure access
to water and
sanitation for all”
Protecting and
restoring water-related
ecosystems such as
forests, mountains,
wetlands and rivers.
Fostering international
cooperation to
encourage water
efficiency and support
treatment technologies
in developing countries.
“Promote inclusive
and sustainable
economic growth,
employment and
decent work for
all”
Achieving higher
levels of productivity
through technological
innovation and
promoting policies
to encourage
entrepreneurship and
job creation. These
measures are critical
to eradicate challenges
such as forced labour,
slavery and human
trafficking.
“Take urgent
action to combat
climate change
and its impacts”
Strengthening
the resilience and
adaptive capacity
of more vulnerable
regions, such as land
locked countries
and island states;
raising awareness and
integrating measures
into national policies
and strategies.
“Conserve and
sustainably use the
oceans, seas and
marine resources”
Managing and
protecting marine and
coastal ecosystems
from land-based
pollution, as well as
addressing the impacts
of ocean acidification.
Enhancing conservation
and the sustainable
use of ocean-based
resources through
international law will
also help mitigate some
of the challenges facing
our oceans.
“Sustainably
manage forests,
combat
desertification, halt
and reverse land
degradation, halt
biodiversity loss”
Conserving and restoring
the use of terrestrial
ecosystems such as
forests, wetlands,
drylands and mountains
by 2020. Promoting the
sustainable management
of forests and halting
deforestation.
“Promote just,
peaceful and
inclusive societies”
Strengthening the rule
of law and promoting
human rights, reducing
the flow of illicit arms
and strengthening
the participation of
developing countries
in the institutions of
global governance.
“Achieve gender
equality and
empower all
women and girls”
Ensuring universal
access to sexual
and reproductive
health, and affording
women equal rights
to economic resources
such as land and
property.
“Ensure access
to affordable,
reliable,
sustainable and
modern energy for
all”
Investing in clean
energy sources such
as solar, wind and
thermal and adopting
cost-effective
standards for a wider
range of technologies.
Expanding
infrastructure and
upgrading technology
to provide clean
energy sources in all
developing countries.

5. Role of SDGs in catalyzing
transformation of India
Development goals underpin the critical development
challenges faced by India
SDGs provide a broad framework to address today’s critical
development challenges. Moreover, the relative criticality
of 17 SDGs may vary depending on the specific needs and
opportunities. A close examination of India’s performance
with respect to different SDGs highlights the urgent need
to achieve targets outlined across a majority of SDGs.
Figure 3: India’s SDG Scorecard (illustrated through relevant examples)
194.6 million people
are undernourished
in India, which
equals one-fourth of
the undernourished
population in the
world. 4
India remains home
to 1/4th
of the world’s
poor and more
than 1/3rd
of all
malnourished
children. 3
Only 28% of the
Indian population
enjoys access to 66%
of India’s available
hospital beds. 5
Close to 78% of
students in grade III
and 50% in grade V
are not able to read
the textbooks of grade
II in India. 6
In 2011, only 29% of
Indian women above
the age of 15 were a
part of the country’s
labor force, compared
to 81% men. 7
Around 37 million
people in India are
affected by water
borne diseases, leading
to a loss of around 73
million working days
annually. 8
By 2040, India’s oil
demand is expected
to rise from 6 to 9.8
million barrels per day,
which will push oil
import dependence to
above 90%. 9
One out of every three
persons in the age
group 15 to 29 years
who have completed at
least their graduation
has been found to be
unemployed in India. 10
India needs more
than $640 billion
in investments
between 2012 and
2031 to build basic
infrastructure for the
country’s growing
urban population. 11
In 2015, the top 1%
of rich Indians owned
53% of the country’s
wealth, while the
share of the top 10%
was 76%. 12
“Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) offer a
comprehensive framework for companies to suitably
align their activities, thereby contributing to
solving global environmental and social challenges.
At BMW Group, SDGs were carefully considered
while drawing up the list of priority topics and
are reflected in the Group’s holistic sustainability
approach.”
Philipp von Sahr
President, BMW Group India
By 2030, it is predicted
that 68 Indian cities
will have more than
one million inhabitants
each, and six mega
cities will have more
than ten million
inhabitants each. 13
Food worth Rs 44,000
crore is wasted
annually due to lack
of adequate storage
infrastructure. 14
India’s emissions
increased by 67%
between 1990 and
2012, and are projected
to increase by 85% by
2030 under business-
as-usual scenario. 15
Around 30 fish species
in the Western Ghats
have been added to
the endangered species
list and 15 species
added to the critically
endangered list. 16
Close to 41% of the
forest cover in India is
considered degraded. 17
As of 2014, 31.3
million cases were
pending in the courts
across India, with
the Supreme court
having around 64,000
cases. 18
In 2014, India
accounted for only
1.7% and 2.4% in
world export and
import respectively (as
compared to China’s
12.3% and 10.3%). 19
“Revitalize the
global partnership
for sustainable
development”
Enhancing North-
South and South-
South cooperation by
supporting national
plans to achieve all
the targets. Promoting
international trade,
helping developing
countries increase
their exports, achieving
a universal rules-based
and equitable trading
system that is fair and
open and benefits all.

6. Government, in its part, could
continue to play a major hand
in driving the implementation
of SDGs through a favourable
policy landscape
Even though the SDG framework has been launched
recently, there already are different policies and campaigns
which seek to create an enabling ecosystem for the
development goals. For instance, principles such as
“SabkaSath, SabkaVikas”, “Swachh Bharat” and “Make
in India campaign” are a step in that direction. Going
forward, Government’s continued thrust on policies to
support innovation and encouraging entrepreneurial
interventions could further help accelerate action.
It is evident that a majority of SDGs are critical for India’s
development agenda over the coming decade. For instance,
with one-fourth of world’s total poor population, India
clearly has an opportunity to improve socio-economic
status of its citizens, which aligns well with the first goal
of “No Poverty”. Similarly, a projected emissions increase
of 85 percent (by 2030) underpins the urgent need for
measures related to thirteenth development goal of
“Climate Action”.
While the relevance of SDGs for India is well understood,
the key question is – “How do we achieve the envisaged
breadth and scale of transformation?” The expert
consensus is that such a transformation can only be
achieved through a collaboration of diverse stakeholders.
Moreover, based on the ability to drive transformation at
scale, government and businesses are uniquely positioned
to accelerate this sustainable transformation journey for
India.
Figure 4: Illustration of how Government in India can continue the development agenda through favourable policies
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Scheme launched in
2005 aims at enhancing the livelihood
of households in rural areas by
providing atleast one hundred days
of guaranteed wage employment
to every household whose adult
members volunteer to do unskilled
manual work. 20
Re-INVEST 2015, Renewable Energy
Global Investors Meet, provided a
platform to promote investment in
the renewable energy sector in India.
Its objective was to showcase the
Government of India’s commitment
to the development and scaling up of
renewable energy in India targeting 175
GW renewable capacity by 2022. 26
The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas
Yojna (PMKVY) launched in 2015
is a demand-driven, reward-based
skill training scheme which will
incentivise skill training by providing
financial rewards to candidates who
successfully complete approved skill
training programmes. Over the next
year, PMKVY will up-skill 24 lakh youth
across India. 27
Start-Up India programme rolled out
in 2015 strives to promote a culture
of entrepreneurship by setting aside
INR 10,000 crore corpus for innovation
driven enterprise, and incentives such
as three-year break from paying income
tax on profits, a Rs 500-crore per year
credit guarantee mechanism, and
exemption from capital gains tax. 28
The Jan Dhan Yojana was rolled out in
2014 to promote financial inclusion
by bringing banking services to the
poor by offering them easy credit. As
of Feb 2015, around $4.8 billion had
been deposited in these accounts. 29
The National Food Security Act was
launched in 2013 and it aims to
provide subsidized food grains. All
the existing programs such as Mid-
day Meal Scheme, Integrated Child
Development Services Scheme and
Public Distribution System will fall
under this act. 21
Mission Indradhanush was launched
in 2014 with an objective of ensuring
full immunization with seven vaccine
preventable diseases to all children
under the age of two years as well as
pregnant women. 22
SWAYAM is a web-portal launched
by the Ministry of Human Resource
Development in 2014 to provide
massive open online courses (MOOCs)
on all kinds of subjects for free. Top
university content is available to every
possible learner with internet access. 23
Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao program
was launched by the government
in 2015 with an aim to save
and empower girl child through
intervention and multi-stakeholder
action in almost 100 districts with
low child sex ratio. 24
Swachh Bharat Mission was rolled out
in 2015 to promote litter free India
along with creating access to toilet
for every household by 2019. $32
billion will be released to construct
120 million toilets across India. 25
“The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
provides India with a brilliant opportunity for
accelerating our progress towards inclusive
development. As a nation, we are a paradox of the
most rapidly growing economy of the world on the
one hand, and possessing some of the lowest social
indicators on the other. With the clarion call of
the Sustainable Development Goals before us, we
need to garner all our resources and harness all our
energies, into pushing forward dedicatedly to our
goal of a fully developed Nation.”
Dr. Bhaskar Chatterjee
Director General & CEO, Indian Institute
of Corporate Affairs

7. Waste Minimization Circle is an
initiative sponsored by the Ministry of
Environment and Forests focused on
spreading waste minimization concept
and related techniques to achieve the
same. 31
Government of India announced
its Intended Nationally Determined
Contribution (INDC) post the climate
change conference, COP 21 in Paris,
which aims to reduce emission
intensity by 33 to 35 percent by 2030
compared to 2005 levels. 32
The “Development of Marines
Fisheries, Infrastructure and Post-
Harvest Operations” scheme was
announced in the 10th
plan and
it focusses on coastal fishing,
assisting small scale fisheries and
modernization of equipment. 33
The Compensatory Afforestation
Bill was passed in 2015 to support
afforestation across India. The Bill
sets aside funds (national and state
level), which will be primarily used to
compensate for loss of forest cover,
regeneration of forest ecosystem,
wildlife protection and infrastructure
development. 34
Government of India signed the peace
treaty with NSCN (Naga outfit) in
2015, bringing to end an insurgency
that lasted for six decades and
promoting peace in the region. 35
Government of India set up a
Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED)
with China in 2014 to explore new
areas for economic cooperation in
various fields including industrial
investment, infrastructure
development, energy conservation and
environment protection, high-tech
industry, clean energy and sustainable
urbanization. 36
It is evident that through policy framework, Government
has an opportunity to continue playing an active role in
the adoption the SDG agenda. The question still remains –
“what do businesses have to do with the world’s greatest
development goals?”
Note: The above table is not intended to be an exhaustive coverage of policies related to
each SDG in India. It only seeks to illustrate some of the already existing policies to support
each SDG in India.
The SDG Framework presents a unique opportunity for
businesses to move from Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
to Corporate Social Opportunity (CSO)
Based on Accenture Strategy research, it is evident that
businesses have engaged in both MDGs and SDGs at
various levels. However, leading organizations are the ones
that view SDGs as an opportunity to look for new ways
to develop and grow their business. These organizations
or “corporate disruptors” are leveraging SDGs to migrate
from a focus on Corporate Social Responsibility to one of
Corporate Social Opportunity, gaining competitive edge
while creating societal and environmental benefits valued
by the global community. 37
These are the organizations
that are well-positioned to drive profitable growth despite
the external challenges. A common underlying feature
of these organizations is that they view implementation
of SDGs from the lens of value creation – i.e. growing
revenues, reducing costs, mitigating risks and improving
brand value.
The figure below provides an illustration of how leading organizations in India are creating value through alignment with
SDGs and, in the process, helping drive the sustainable transformation of India.
Figure 5: How leading organizations are creating value through adoption of SDG agenda
SDG How businesses are embracing SDGs - An illustration
Nestle has rolled out a Women Dairy Development Program in Moga village, Punjab to secure its
supply chain in a fragmented market. Through this effort, the company is able to enhance the
livelihood of women in that region and thereby improve the economic scenario. 38
Dabur runs an initiative called “Dil Se Dua”, wherein during the festive season of Rakhi and Diwali,
signatures are collected from consumers to seek their support for Dabur’s pledge against hunger and
malnutrition. Against each signature, Dabur donates a pack of Real fruit juice, which is distributed
to an underprivileged kid to meet their nutritional needs. 39
This allows Dabur to potentially tap a
new target segment over the long run and also create a positive brand image.
Vodafone India has launched a new health focused mobile web service, Ask a Doctor – Health@5,
which enables its subscribers to ask health related questions to medical experts at an affordable
price thereby enabling wider access to healthcare even to remote and rural locations (while creating
a revenue stream for itself). 40
The Tata Steel Education Excellence Programme (TEEP) was launched to improve the quality of
education across India. Teachers and principals undergo training to assess schools participating in
the programme, once a year. Currently, 2,500 teachers and 100,000 students are benefited through
this program. 41
YES Bank launched an initiative called LEAP, which aims at providing financial services like credit,
saving and micro insurance to Self Help Groups through local partnerships to build capacity of the
financially disadvantaged. As of March 2014, the program had reached out to 40,000 Women Self
Help Groups, thereby driving women empowerment while creating a new potential customer base
over the long run. 42
The Smart City Mission was rolled out
in 2014 to drive economic growth and
improve the quality of life of people. A
budget of Rs 48,000 crore has been set
aside by the government to make 98
cities smart. First set of 20 cities have
been shortlisted to start the project. 30

8. Tata Chemicals launched a low cost purifier for Indian low-income groups, who lack access to safe
drinking water. This is the most economical storage purifier available in India and is available from
INR 999. 43
Suzlon launched the “Swacha Hawa Mission” campaign at one of its recent conferences (RE-
INVEST), wherein each visitor was requested to pledge in contributing towards cleaner air by
tagging their visiting card to the tree at the stand. Suzlon would then plant a tree at its wind parks
present across the country for each visitor who had pledged. 44
RangSutra is a company that bridges the gap between the artisans and the community by
establishing a platform for artisans living in remote regions to sell their handmade products thereby
improving their economic scenario and ensuring stability of their jobs. 45
Gujarat International Finance Tech-City is an under-construction project in Gujarat set up by
the state government and IL&FS. It is positioned to be a financial and IT services hub. This city is
expected to provide job opportunities to over 500,000 people and offer world class services in terms
of quality of life, infrastructure and ambience. 46
ITC launched “E-Choupal” initiative, which provides internet access to rural farmers with an
objective to empower them to take more informed business decisions. This allowed ITC to better
manage up-stream supply chain while improving the quality of life for farmers. 47
Mahindra Reva designs and manufactures compact electric cars, licenses out its electric vehicle
technologies, electrifies existing platforms, and helps deliver integrated zero-emissions mobility
solutions which are key for sustainable transportation in cities. 48
Hindustan Unilever Ltd has taken several active steps towards responsible production through
sustainably sourced raw materials. In 2014, around 16% of tea sourced from India for Unilever’s
brands was from sustainable estates certified by Rain Forest Alliance in India. 49
Sun Edison is setting up over 100 off-grid solar energy plants in rural India. The initiative is creating
shared value by bringing economic opportunity to villagers through use of electricity and creating
new customer base for the company at the same time.
Asthamudi Estuary, Kerala becomes the first clam fishery in India to be certified by MSC (Marine
Stewardship Council) for sustainable fishing. It is the second largest estuarine system in Kerala and
it supports the livelihoods of around 3,000 fishermen involved in collection, cleaning processing
and trading of clams. WWF-India, the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) and the
Kerala State Fisheries Department were responsible for this initiative. 50
ITC has committed to promote sustainable forestry. All the units under its Paperboards and Specialty
Papers Division are Forest Stewardship Council certified, guaranteeing ethical and legal sourcing of
wood. 51
Sanlaap is focused on gender injustice and violence against women and children. The primary work
is focused against trafficking of women and children for commercial sexual exploitation, sexual
abuse and forced prostitution. 52
The Rockefeller Foundation’s Smart Power for Rural Development (SPRD) is an innovative
partnership seeking to drive social and economic development in rural communities through
expanding access to reliable decentralized electricity. Focused initially on India, SPRD brings
together key stakeholders including energy service companies, government agencies, investors,
anchor customers such as cell towers, micro-enterprise accelerators, and local non-governmental
organizations to expand access to electricity for 1,000 villages in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh by 2018.
By building a sustainable and scalable market for renewable mini-grid operators, SPRD is helping
create an enabling environment for new local entrepreneurs to emerge, spurring more inclusive
economic growth and development. 53
According to Ashvin Dayal, Associate Vice President and
Managing Director - Asia, Rockefeller Foundation, “By bringing together the right mix of committed
public, private and social sector partners we can build a sustainable, pro-poor market for energy
access that will transform lives of millions of under-served population in India and elsewhere”.
“It is my belief that businesses are uniquely placed to make a meaningful
contribution to sustainable and inclusive growth given the transformational
capacity that resides in its entrepreneurial vitality, creative capability and
innovative capacity. Corporates that are driven by a superordinate vision to
serve larger societal priorities can indeed make a significant and growing
contribution to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”
Y C Deveshwar
Chairman, ITC

9. Critical success factors for
accelerated implementation in India
Need for a decentralized approach to manage scale
Given the sheer size of a country like India, it accounts for
a significant share of the world’s development challenges.
For instance, India is home to almost one-third of the
world’s 1.2 billion poor people. Every year, there are close
to 1 million children below the age of five who perish
due to acute malnutrition. Additionally, there are close
to 44,000 women who succumb to death from childbirth
due to inadequate access to healthcare. Given the scale
of these challenges, there is a general consensus amongst
experts that India’s ability to successfully meet SDG
targets is critical for the overall success of SDGs. In fact,
interestingly the state of Uttar Pradesh alone accounts
for approximately 8% of the world’s population living in
extreme poverty. If Uttar Pradesh were to successfully
achieve the targets related to the first development goal
(of No Poverty), the world will be on its way to achieving
the first development goal. 54
While the role India plays in the overall success of SDGs
is widely acknowledged, there is also a critical need to
create the necessary ecosystem for a successful roll-out of
SDGs. In fact, learnings from the implementation of MDGs
over the past one and a half decade highlight the critical
success factors for India.
In India, the MDGs were broadly implemented by the
central government. However, there were practical
challenges faced with respect to the “last mile
connectivity”. Given the federal governance structure
in India, experts believe that adopting a decentralized
approach through active participation of state
governments and civil society would be critical. In this
context, the role of newly constituted NITI Aayog would
be important. There may be a need to set-up an innovative
ecosystem to facilitate collaboration across central
and state governments, to drive the progress across 17
developments goals and underlying 169 targets. 55
The SDG framework represents a significant jump in terms
of scope of coverage vis-à-vis the MDGs. For instance,
while MDGs encapsulated 8 development goals and 18
associated targets, the SDG framework comprises of 17
development goals and 169 underlying targets. Given
this expansion in scope, there may be significant efforts
required to establish a robust monitoring and evaluation
framework to track the progress on implementation of
SDGs. In fact, experts opine that in the 12th
Five-Year
Plan (which had only 25 indicators), there were practical
challenges faced with respect to availability of reliable
data to track and monitor progress. In light of this, there is
a significant need to strengthen the monitoring framework
to objectively track the progress of implementation of
SDGs. 56
Framework for monitoring and evaluation
One of the fundamental ways in which SDGs differ
from MDGs is that these new goals require sustainable
funding sources to achieve the ambitious targets
set for the 2015-2030 timeframe. The investments
are needed to support all goals, including quality
R&D for innovation, massive capital investments for
infrastructure capacity and expansion, testing and
scaling of proven solutions, and financing of new
techniques. An investment of around $74 billion per
year is needed to end hunger in India by 2030. 57
It is
also expected that India will need around $465 billion
to be spent on infrastructure development over the next
five years, with 70% funds needed for power, roads and
urban infrastructure segments. 58
Access to Resources
We are now part of a time and an era where
resources are far too scarce than until a few years
ago. Many industry players are competing for
these severe natural resources. Industry today, is
continuously challenged to explore ways to innovate
and optimize their resources – manpower, financial
and environmental – which helps them in addressing
the triple bottom line frame-work for supporting
sustainability goals.
The new Sustainable Development Goals announced
by the United Nations clearly sets the agenda for
business leadership to steer its operations that
are inclusive, broad based and sustainable besides
providing alternative pathways for incessant efforts
that businesses contribute more fully not just in
making profits but also in taking forward its societal
and environmental responsibilities.”
Dinesh K Sarraf
Chairman & Managing Director,
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited
“India’s resource sector has huge potential to
contribute to the nation’s economy. For long term
sustainability, India must focus on exploration and
resource development and boost investment in the
resource sector through an enabling regulatory &
policy environment and predictable fiscal regimes.
As a resource company, we continue to improve our
operational efficiencies by leveraging innovation and
technology. Our commitment towards Social License
to Operate goes beyond the regulatory compliance
and is focused on the development and growth of
a wider network of stakeholders including the host
communities. Sustainability is about securing the
future, and together, we can make India self-reliant
in the resource space.”
Tom Albanese
CEO, Vedanta Limited
“Digital infrastructure is very essential to connect
various systems together so that there is better
interaction and monitoring possibilities. Real time
data enables us to drive specific initiatives more
effectively and in a timely manner. At Infosys,
real time monitoring and control of our campus
operations have reduced our energy and water
consumption by nearly 50% in the last 8 years. The
data collected ensures sustained performance and
provides valuable inputs for future designs, and it’s a
continuous improvement cycle.”
Dr. N.R. Narayana Murthy
Founder, Infosys Ltd

10. Summary
This introductory paper on the relevance of SDGs in India
demonstrates the critical need to drive sustainable growth
and transformation of India during 2015 – 2030. It is
evident that SDGs provide a robust and holistic framework
to address the development challenges, which global
economies are confronted with today - India being no
exception!
From an implementation perspective, the critical first step
for a country like India might be to decompose the broad
SDG framework and identify its relevance, along with the
most pressing issues and opportunities, at different levels
such as Centre, States and Districts. In this context, it is
important to note that the adoption of the SDG framework
is not an all-or-nothing scenario. It is entirely possible
that a particular state may need to focus on just a handful
of SDGs in the first phase of implementation, before
embarking on a more holistic transformation journey.
It is also important to note that demystifying the broad
SDG framework may require an active dialogue across
diverse players with different “influential” capabilities.
This could include participants such as government,
departments such as NITI Aayog, businesses, NGOs,
institutional players, academia as well as citizens. It is
heartening to note that at different levels, the process has
already started. For instance, states such as Kerala and
Assam have already launched a capacity building program
to demystify and embrace SDGs. In its part, Accenture
Strategy is working closely with UNGC to conduct a study
of CEO perspectives and understanding imperatives for
businesses to adopt the SDG framework. As a nation, as
we move forward with our transformation journey, it
would be critical to realize synergies from all these related
but somewhat “discrete” initiatives to realize India’s true
sustainable development potential.
References
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44000-cr.html
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22 http://www.nhp.gov.in/1mission-indradhanush_pg
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using-them.html
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“The Global Compact has helped further the cause
of sustainability around the world. Following
COP21, Sustainability thought and action is
entering a more active phase and the GCNI
is playing a key role in helping India meet its
commitments to the international community
made in Paris. All of this will make a positive
contribution towards achieving the SDGs.”
Ulhas Yargop
Group President, (IT Sector) & Group CTO,
Chairman, Mahindra Group Sustainability Council
“The post 2015 global development agenda, guided
by the Sustainable Development Goals, calls for
an articulate and universally inclusive financing
framework that must be transparent, accountable,
and result-oriented. For India, as one of the most
vulnerable regions to climate impact, public and
private financing is mission critical and needs to
work collaboratively through innovative climate
finance mechanisms. This would deliver on the twin
responsibilities of poverty eradication and moving
towards a low carbon growth economy.”
Rana Kapoor
Founder & CEO, YES Bank
Chairman, YES Institute

11. Acknowledgements
42 Yes Bank, https://www.yesbank.in/knowledge-banking/responsible-banking/inclusive-social-banking.html
43 Tata Swach, http://www.tataswach.com/about-us
44 Suzlon, http://www.suzlon.com/media_center/events_details.aspx?l1=7&l2=30&eventid=31
45 Rangsutra, http://www.rangsutra.com/rangsutra.html
46 GIFT, http://giftgujarat.in/masterplan/vision.aspx
47 ITC’s e-choupal boosting company’s FMCG business, http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2012-07-25/news/32848625_1_
fmcg-business-e-choupal-network-fiama-di-wills
48 Mahindra, http://mahindrareva.com/corporate/about-us
49 HUL, https://www.hul.co.in/sustainable-living/india-sustainability-initiatives/sustainable-sourcing.html
50 WWF, http://www.wwfindia.org/?12341/India-gets-its-first-MSC-certified-fishery-in-Kerala
51 ITC, http://www.itcportal.com/businesses/paperboards-and-specialty-papers.aspx
52 Sanlaap, http://www.sanlaap.org/about/
53 Smart Power India, http://www.smartpowerindia.org/
54 http://asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2015/10/14/why-india-could-make-or-break-the-success-of-sdgs/
55 http://www.livemint.com/Opinion/DqxwU1aPMKsthCfuJG7ZkO/Another-development-task-for-India.html
56 http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-in-no-position-to-meet-sdgs/article7635948.ece
57 http://www.livemint.com/Politics/vcRxMBBZ2AmVRtLemq5paL/India-needs-to-invest-74-billion-per-year-to-end-hunger-by.html
58 http://www.ibef.org/industry/infrastructure-sector-india.aspx
Study Leads
Pooran C. Pandey
Vishvesh Prabhakar
Lead Authors
Sundeep Singh
Winsley Peter
Palak Kapoor
The authors would like to thank the following people for
their insights and assistance
Ritesh Kapoor, Kinkini Roy Choudhary, Abhishek Srivastava, Jay Thakkar and
Amanpreet Talwar
For further information please contact:
Vishvesh Prabhakar
Managing Director,
Sustainability,
Accenture Strategy, India
vishvesh.prabhakar@accenture.com
Sundeep Singh
Principal,
Sustainability,
Accenture Strategy, India
sundeep.singh@accenture.com
Pooran Chandra Pandey
Executive Director
UN Global Compact Network India
pooran.pandey@globalcompact.in

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