The Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar (IIT Ropar) has been awarded a five star Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA), one of the highest national ratings for green buildings. The rating was awarded to the institute for its upcoming campus. It was awarded on February 19 at the seventh GRIHA Summit at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi.
The campus was rated on 34 criteria, categorised under various sections like site selection, conservation, efficient material utilisation, and site planning, among others. Each criterion has certain points assigned to it, and a building is required to score a minimum of 50 points being eligible for certification. IIT Ropar’s new campus scored more than 600 points against these 34 criteria.
Speaking on the occasion, Prof Sarit Kumar Das, Director, IIT Ropar said, “This rating reinforces our commitment towards the green movement in our country. We have ensured that we adhere to the 34 points laid down by GRIHA. We are working towards implementing efficient methods and techniques, through which we will be able to achieve the optimum energy efficiency and conservation of resources. We will also work towards setting up processes by which our energy requirements are met through renewable energy sources, our water usage is reduced considerably and also our waste matter is recycled in a useful manner.”
According to a press release, the master plan of the new campus envisions a low-energy utilisation campus. It aims to reduce the consumption of energy and water by almost around 28 percent. Some of the features inducing sustainability and low energy utilisation include renewable energy sources like solar panels, rainwater harvesting, use a of fly-ash bricks for construction of the buildings, and setting up a sewage and waste treatment plant, among others.