ACE January 2020

Update
11 th GRIHA Summit focuses on
‘Integrated Approach to Sustainability’
Highlighting that nearly 65 per cent of India’s
population is rural, Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister
for Road Transport & Highways and MSMEs, said
that creating employment for the rural, agriculture and
tribal sector is a high priority for the government. This
requires knowledge, technology and innovation that can
drive sustainable development in India.
The Minister was speaking at the 11th edition of the
GRIHA Summit, co-hosted by GRIHA council and UNSW,
Sydney, at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi. The
theme for this year’s Summit is “Approach to Integrated
Sustainability”.
Speaking about various green initiatives of the
government, Gadkari said, “Creating waste into wealth
is the new vision for the country. We are working hard
to formulate a policy on biofuels in the transport sector.
We are also promoting ethanol and bio-compressed
natural gas (bio-CNG). The sector is growing very fast.
There are plans to make bio-CNG from rice husk in Delhi.
We have also launched India’s first motorbike powered
on 100 per cent bioethanol.”
Citing the example of Nagpur, the Minister said the city
earns nearly `300 crore from recycling sewage water
and nearly 80 buses in the city are plying on bio-CNG,
made from sludge and various kinds of biowaste. He
also spoke about the use of flyash waste being used in
construction and the mandatory use of 8% plastic in
road construction. In Maharashtra, the Minister spoke
about the rejuvenation of rivers and nullahs in a few
districts, by deepening the water bodies and using the
material for making aggregate used in road construction.
Her Excellency Harinder Sidhu, Australian High
Commissioner to India, said India and Australia face
similar challenges of urbanisation, which get further
complicated by climate change. Talking about the need
to make homes and cities liveable and functional, she
said, “We commend the GRIHA Council for making
frameworks that reduce emissions from our built
environment.”
His Excellency Freddy Svane, Ambassador, Royal
Danish Embassy to India, emphasised Denmark’s
commitment to reduce 70 per cent emissions by
2030, through their own efforts and not by any
carbon trading mechanism. Talking about India’s
efforts, he added, “The social aspect of sustainability
is important. Billions of people in India should be
able to enjoy the same quality of life as developed
countries, but with more responsibility and with the
help of technology and innovation.” He also talked
about developing a strategic partnership between
India and Denmark.
During the inaugural session, several new projects
across India that have demonstrated compliance
under the GRIHA rating system received awards. ITC
Kohenur in Hyderabad, “Integrity” Campus at Titan
Corporate Office in Bengaluru, National Academy
of Customs, Indirect Taxes and Narcotics (NACIN)
in Hyderabad, Indian Institute of Management (IIM)
Kozhikode Campus (Phase V), and Bihar Museum in
Patna are among the recipients of a 5-star GRIHA
rating. The rating variant GRIHA is designed for
new constructions having built-up area more than
2500 square metres. The rating system consists of 31
criteria categorised under various sections such as
site planning, construction management, occupant
comfort and wellbeing, sustainable building
materials, performance monitoring and validation,
and innovation.
42 January 2020 ACE UPDATE
ARCHITECTURE CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING