The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) hosts 14th edition of Green Building Congress

Green Building Conference

The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC), part of CII, hosted the 14th edition of Green Building Congress from 6-8 October in Mumbai.
The 3-day event included seminars with over 100 international and national speakers, 2000 delegates, and an exhibition on green building products and technologies by around 100 exhibitors

IGBC also hosted the Asia Pacific Regional Network Meeting 2016 (APN) on the sidelines of the event. IGBC is represented by all stakeholders in the construction industry comprising of architects, builders, developers, corporates, designers, facility managers, government institutions, nodal agencies, product manufacturers & suppliers, service consultants, etc.

The vision of the Council is to enable sustainable-built environment for all and facilitate India to be one of the global leaders in sustainable-built environment by 2025.

The APN meeting comprising of 17 Councils, was held in India for the first time. 17 countries under World GBC's Asia Pacific Network have joined hands in the promotion of green buildings across the globe. APN works closely with the stakeholders in identifying new growth opportunities to facilitate the adoption and promotion of green buildings across the globe. The businesses and innovators behind some of Asia Pacific's most iconic green buildings were announced. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was awarded under the category-Business Leadership in Sustainability. This award recognises companies which are truly integrating sustainability into their business models and contributing towards a sustainable-built environment

Presenting the awards, Ar. Tai Lee Siang, Chair, WGBC, said, "India is in the forefront of Global Green Building movement. This is the result of Government-industry and people's partnership. The need of the hour is to work towards promoting sustainable development across the globe. By 2050, 100% buildings should be net zero."

Terri Wills, CEO, WGBC, said, "From Singapore to Vietnam, Australia to Korea, green buildings are rising across the Asia Pacific region in response to significant population growth, environmental pressures, and the strengthened business case."


Dr. Mangu Singh, MD, DMRC, highlighted the activities and initiatives of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) in developing green norms for the Metro Stations. He added that DMRC is uniquely positioned to work with other Metros on green initiatives.

Dr. Prem C Jain, Chairman, IGBC, expressing delight over DMRC's achievements, highlighted that India's position in the global green buildings map has been further consolidated and this remarkable achievement will go a long way in building a greener and healthier India. He informed that over 3,800 green building projects are currently registered with IGBC, amounting to over 4.45 billion sq.ft of green building footprint. "Today, India stands no. 2 in the world in terms of largest registered green building footprint. IGBC's vision is to facilitate 10 billion sq.ft of green building footprint by 2022 in India. This has the potential to reduce the GHG emissions of the country by 3 percent."

Ashish Kumar Singh, IAS, Principal Secretary, Public Works Department, Government of Maharashtra, said that the need of the hour is to create a policy framework to accelerate green buildings. PWD has notified that upcoming government buildings in Maharashtra will adopt IGBC Green Building Standards, and existing buildings in the State will be retrofitted to become green buildings.


Gurmit Singh Arora, Co-Chair, IGBC Mumbai Chapter, added, "India is in an excellent position to redefine the course and strategy of Green Building movement. Maharashtra will continue to play an important role in the promotion of Green buildings."

Hon'ble Union Minister for Railways, Suresh Prabhu said that all the upcoming 100 smart cities would also have smart and green stations. He highlighted the activities and initiatives of Indian Railways, aimed at conserving resources. Restoration of water bodies, energy management, use of LED lights, promoting green toilets, planting of trees along the tracks, are some of the green initiatives of the Ministry. He emphasised the need and importance of designing buildings that will conserve natural resources, and the green building movement should become a mass movement, with every building being a green building.


Awards, presentations, and recognitions included WGBC's Asia Pacific Leadership Awards 2016; launch of 5 IGBC Green Building Ratings - Existing MRTS, Health Care Facilities, Data Centres, Villages, and Railway Stations; Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR) covering 49,000 acres, awarded the first IGBC Green Cities 'Platinum' Rating; 5 Villages awarded IGBC Green Villages Rating, two places of worship awarded IGBC Reverent Green Rating – Mosque in Kodi & Siddhi Vinayak Temple, Mumbai; signing of MoU with ISHRAE for Indoor Environmental Control for India; MOU with DMRC for sharing the best practices; 150 certified green building projects presented with IGBC Plaque and Certificate; 47 IGBC Leaders presented IGBC Fellowship Award, new initiative of IGBC; 15 senior persons from construction industry presented with IGBC Green Champion Award; release of 2nd edition of Coffee Table Book on Green Buildings of India; IGBC Green League Award presented to top three finalists, new initiative of IGBC; awards presented to winners of the Annual Green Your School Contest and IGBC Green Design Competition for architectural students.