Are businesses behaving responsibly towards environment? Do they share information about what actions they are taking to manage their environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks? In 2012, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) mandated that the top listed companies (by market capitalisation) must file what is now called ‘Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reports (BRSR), as part of their annual reports. An otherwise progressive and welcome step, this initiative – feels Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) – is yet to live up to its full potential. Through a close look at BRSR reports filed by some of India’s top companies, this guidance brief offers an in-depth assessment of the initiative and recommends some measures for course-correction.