Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) - Principles and Practice · Integrated Reporting Framework, Global Reporting Initiative Framework and Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting

BRSR Core and Value Chain Assurance Explained

Updated 11 October 2026

BRSR Core is a subset of the BRSR with a few key ESG KPIs under nine attributes. SEBI requires listed entities, phased in by market capitalisation, to get these KPIs assured, moving from limited to reasonable assurance. Value chain disclosure extends the same KPIs to major suppliers and buyers. Check the latest SEBI circular for dates.

Understand BRSR Core and Value Chain Assurance

The Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR) is the annual ESG report that SEBI requires from the top listed entities. It is long. It has general disclosures, management and process disclosures, and principle-wise indicators based on the nine principles of the National Guidelines on Responsible Business Conduct (NGRBC). Much of it is narrative, so it is hard to compare across companies and hard to verify.

SEBI therefore picked a small set of measurable indicators and called it BRSR Core. These are key performance indicators (KPIs) grouped under nine ESG attributes. The aim is comparability and credibility. A KPI that is numeric and externally assured is more reliable than a descriptive statement.

The second idea is assurance. An independent assurance provider checks the BRSR Core KPIs. Limited assurance gives a moderate level of comfort (negative form of conclusion: nothing came to attention that suggests the data is misstated). Reasonable assurance gives a high level of comfort (positive form of conclusion) and needs more testing. SEBI set a glide path by market capitalisation. Each tier starts with limited assurance and moves to reasonable assurance a year later:

Top 150 listed entities: limited assurance in FY 2023-24, reasonable assurance in FY 2024-25.
Top 250: limited assurance in FY 2024-25, reasonable assurance in FY 2025-26.
Top 500: limited assurance in FY 2025-26, reasonable assurance in FY 2026-27.
Top 1000: limited assurance in FY 2026-27, reasonable assurance in FY 2027-28.

SEBI can revise this schedule, so confirm the dates against the latest circular or the ICSI material you are told to follow.

The third idea is value chain disclosure. A company's ESG impact does not stop at its own gates. Emissions, labour practices and water use of suppliers and buyers matter too. SEBI's value chain framework applies to the top 250 listed entities by market capitalisation, phased by year. These entities disclose BRSR Core KPIs for their upstream (suppliers) and downstream (buyers, distributors) partners. Every partner that individually accounts for 2% or more of purchases or sales by value is covered. Together, the partners covered should make up at least 75% of total purchases or sales. The 75% figure is a cumulative coverage target. It is not a cut-off that lets you drop a partner who passes the 2% test. Value chain disclosure and its assurance were introduced on a voluntary basis first. SEBI has revised timelines more than once, so always quote the position in the circular or ICSI material you are told to follow.

So the difference between BRSR and BRSR Core is simple. BRSR is the full report. BRSR Core is the assured, KPI-based subset within it. Value chain disclosure extends the Core KPIs beyond the company's own operations.

Key rules to remember

BRSR Core structure: BRSR Core = KPIs under 9 ESG attributes, a subset of BRSR; Nine attributes: GHG footprint; water footprint; energy footprint; circularity (waste management); employee wellbeing and safety; gender diversity; inclusive development; fairness in engaging with customers and suppliers; openness of business.
Assurance levels: Limited assurance (moderate comfort) → Reasonable assurance (high comfort); BRSR Core KPIs are assured by an independent assurance provider, with a glide path from limited to reasonable assurance by phase.
Value chain threshold: Every partner individually at ≥ 2% of purchases (upstream) or sales (downstream) by value is identified and disclosed; together the partners covered should be ≥ 75% of the total; Applies to value chain disclosure of Core KPIs by the top 250 listed entities, phased by year. The 75% is a cumulative coverage target, not a cut-off that excludes partners who pass the 2% test. Initially voluntary, with assurance also voluntary at first. Confirm current dates in the latest SEBI circular.
GHG emission intensity: (Scope 1 + Scope 2 emissions) ÷ turnover; BRSR Core reports intensity per rupee of turnover, including a figure adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP). Express units clearly, for example tCO2e per ₹ crore.
Phasing of assurance applicability: Top 150: limited FY 2023-24 → reasonable FY 2024-25; top 250: FY 2024-25 → FY 2025-26; top 500: FY 2025-26 → FY 2026-27; top 1000: FY 2026-27 → FY 2027-28; Each tier of listed entities by market capitalisation starts with limited assurance and moves to reasonable assurance a year later. Confirm the years in the latest SEBI circular before you write them. Do not confuse this with value chain disclosure, which applies to the top 250 listed entities.

How to solve BRSR Core and Value Chain Assurance questions

Use this order for any question on BRSR Core, assurance or value chain disclosure, whether it asks you to explain, compare or advise.

1Identify the ask: list of KPIs, assurance rule, value chain rule, or difference from BRSR.
2State the source: SEBI's framework for BRSR Core and value chain, under the LODR disclosure requirement for BRSR.
3Define the term used in the question in one line (BRSR Core, limited or reasonable assurance, value chain).
4Apply the rule to the facts: which entity category, which attribute, which partners, which assurance level.
5Compute where needed, for example intensity per ₹ crore or the 2% and 75% value chain coverage.
6Conclude clearly and add the practical compliance step: collect data, appoint an assurance provider, engage suppliers, disclose in the annual report.
7Add a caution that applicability dates and thresholds follow the latest SEBI circular.

Quickest way: Nine attributes, two assurance levels, 2% and 75%

When to use it: Use it for short-answer questions and the first lines of long answers, when you have a few minutes.

Recall the nine attributes in order: GHG, water, energy, waste, employee wellbeing and safety, gender diversity, inclusive development, fairness, openness.
Tag each with a typical KPI, for example intensity, consumption, spending as % of revenue, wages to women, MSME sourcing, accounts payable days.
Write assurance as limited first, reasonable a year later, by independent provider, tier by tier.
Write value chain as: disclose every partner at or above 2% individually, and check that together they cover at least 75%. It was voluntary at the start.
Close with a one-line contrast: BRSR is the full report, BRSR Core is the assured KPI subset.

Common mistakes in BRSR Core and Value Chain Assurance

Saying BRSR Core replaces BRSR.
The names sound like two separate reports.
Fix: Write that BRSR Core is a subset of KPIs inside the BRSR. The full BRSR continues to be filed.
Treating limited and reasonable assurance as the same.
Both are called assurance and both involve an auditor.
Fix: State the level of comfort and the form of conclusion. Limited is moderate with a negative conclusion. Reasonable is high with a positive conclusion.
Listing fewer or wrong attributes, or mixing them with the nine NGRBC principles.
Both frameworks have nine items, so they get confused.
Fix: Learn the nine Core attributes separately, as environment, social and governance themes. NGRBC principles are used for the principle-wise sections of BRSR.
Stating value chain disclosure and assurance as mandatory from day one.
Students remember the requirement but not its voluntary start.
Fix: Say it began on a voluntary basis for the top listed entities, with a phased timeline, and refer to the latest circular.
Quoting the 2% and 75% thresholds loosely, such as 2% of total turnover.
The base is forgotten.
Fix: The base is purchases for upstream partners and sales for downstream partners, both by value.
Giving intensity without a unit or denominator.
Students copy the number and skip the basis.
Fix: Always write the numerator, the turnover basis and the unit, for example tCO2e per ₹ crore.

Worked examples

Example 1

Distinguish between BRSR and BRSR Core. Also explain the assurance requirement for BRSR Core.

Show the solution

Scope: BRSR is the full sustainability report with general, management and principle-wise disclosures based on the NGRBC. BRSR Core is a subset of selected KPIs under nine ESG attributes.
Nature: BRSR has both narrative and numeric items. BRSR Core focuses on measurable KPIs, such as GHG intensity, water and energy consumption, waste, spending on employee wellbeing and safety, wages paid to women, and openness of business metrics such as concentration of purchases and sales and related-party loans and advances.
Assurance: the Core KPIs must be assured by an independent assurance provider. The glide path starts with limited assurance and moves to reasonable assurance, phased by market capitalisation.
Value chain: BRSR Core KPIs can also be reported for the value chain, which the full BRSR does not require in this form.
Purpose: Core gives comparable and credible data to investors.

Answer: BRSR is the complete ESG report. BRSR Core is its assured, KPI-based subset under nine attributes. Core KPIs need independent assurance, moving from limited to reasonable assurance in phases, and may be extended to value chain partners.

Example 2

A listed company has annual purchases of ₹1,000 crore. Its suppliers are: A ₹300 crore, B ₹200 crore, C ₹150 crore, D ₹100 crore, E ₹80 crore, F ₹50 crore, G ₹30 crore, and others ₹90 crore in total, each below ₹20 crore. Which upstream partners are within the value chain disclosure under the 2% and 75% test? Also compute GHG intensity if Scope 1 is 30,000 tCO2e, Scope 2 is 20,000 tCO2e and turnover is ₹2,500 crore.

Show the solution

2% of ₹1,000 crore is ₹20 crore. Suppliers A to G each account for 2% or more (G is ₹30 crore, which is 3%), so all seven are identified individually. The other suppliers are each below ₹20 crore and are not identified individually.
Share of purchases: A 30%, B 20%, C 15%, D 10%, E 8%, F 5%, G 3%.
Cumulative coverage of A to G: 300 + 200 + 150 + 100 + 80 + 50 + 30 = ₹910 crore, which is 91% of ₹1,000 crore.
Check the coverage target: 91% is at least 75%, so the target is met. The 75% is a minimum coverage target, not a point at which you stop. You do not drop E, F or G, because each passes the 2% test.
The remaining suppliers total ₹90 crore (9%) and each is below 2%, so they are not identified individually.
GHG: Scope 1 + Scope 2 = 30,000 + 20,000 = 50,000 tCO2e.
Intensity = 50,000 ÷ 2,500 = 20 tCO2e per ₹ crore of turnover (the PPP-adjusted version applies the PPP factor to turnover).

Answer: Suppliers A, B, C, D, E, F and G are all disclosed, because each is at or above the 2% threshold. Together they cover 91% of purchases, which meets the 75% coverage target. GHG intensity is 20 tCO2e per ₹ crore of turnover.

Exam tips

Write the nine attributes as a list in every answer on Core KPIs. It is the easiest place to score.
Pair each attribute with at least one KPI. A bare list earns less than a list with examples.
For comparison questions, use a short contrast pattern: scope, content, assurance, value chain.
In case-based questions, state the entity category and the phase before applying assurance or value chain rules, and note that dates follow the latest SEBI circular.
Show the working for any numeric item, with units, even when the sum is small.

Practice questions from Integrated Reporting Framework, Global Reporting Initiative Framework and Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting

BRSR Core and Value Chain Assurance: frequently asked questions

What are the BRSR Core KPIs?

They are measurable indicators under nine ESG attributes: GHG footprint, water footprint, energy footprint, circularity through waste management, employee wellbeing and safety, gender diversity, inclusive development, fairness in engaging with customers and suppliers, and openness of business. Each attribute has specific KPIs such as intensity figures, consumption, spending ratios and concentration of dealings.

What is the reasonable assurance requirement for BRSR Core?

An independent assurance provider must give assurance on the BRSR Core KPIs. SEBI set a glide path from limited assurance to reasonable assurance, phased by market capitalisation. Reasonable assurance gives a higher level of comfort and involves more testing.

What are the value chain disclosure requirements under BRSR?

The top 250 listed entities, phased by year, report BRSR Core KPIs for upstream and downstream partners. The framework uses a 2% individual threshold of purchases or sales by value and coverage of a cumulative 75%. It started on a voluntary basis, and timelines have been revised, so check the latest circular.

What is the difference between BRSR and BRSR Core?

BRSR is the full ESG report with narrative and numeric disclosures. BRSR Core is a subset of KPIs that are measurable and subject to assurance. Value chain reporting extends the Core KPIs to partners.