ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) is a buzz word among global policy-makers and investors today as businesses look to be more environmentally and socially sound.However, ESG aptly captures the problems Punjab is facing as all the three critical factors look under extreme pressure in Punjab.Let us first take environmental factors.Air quality remains hazardous in Punjab as unchecked stubble burning, unfettered firecracker bursting and vehicular pollution together are creating a toxic air which is no less than smoking cigarettes regularly.The visibility remains low and people are getting exposed to respiratory problems which can easily become chronic in nature.

The second factor is social emptiness in Punjab.The youth ,who had human and economic capital, no longer lives in Punjab. The migration has sapped the youthfulness of Punjab and whatever was remaining has gone to drug addiction.The situation has become so helpless that no one knows how to explain it.At a time when India is growing at astounding rates, seeing unskilled migration of Punjab looks like a lost opportunity to participate in India’s growth story.Drug addiction looks another tragedy which has hit so badly that no solution appears to be in sight.Social fabric of Punjab is under great stress with things looking completely irritating and annoying.

The third factor is governance where again Punjab is completely out of tune with the country.Lawlessness is very easy to sight in Punjab.Jumping traffic light is a fashion and in fact, those who stop at traffic lights are abused for stopping at traffic light.If you cross a traffic light when it is green, there is high chance of accident as someone may bump into you while jumping the traffic light.This is when traffic light works and many times, it just doesn’t work.There is no pressure for wearing helmets and almost everyone has a phone attached to their ear while driving.This is completely unacceptable and serious deterioration even compared to Punjab’s previous track record.While it is true that Punjab has paucity of funds but it is the duty of state to generate funds to atleast make sure that main roads are properly repaired and regulated but even this sphere continues to disappoint.

In today’s era, when southern states like Karnataka and Telangana compete for business by providing high ESG standards, Punjab is struggling to take even baby steps in this direction.Private Capital and enterprise is desperately required to lift fortunes of Punjab but when everyday is a day of protest then how will a business run.Punjab needs to lift the haziness not only from its air but also from its mind.It needs to turn to learnings of the Gurus to live a simple life and do things that bring prosperity ,healthiness and security to society as whole.On an optimistic note, it looks like Punjabis are now desperate to turn the things around as they realize the need to go back to basics leaving the bogus gala of consumption in a corner.