Only 93 residential projects in NCR complaint with GRIHA

All new launches will be pushed to take GRIHA compliance says Credai

NEW DELHI/ NOIDA: All new residential and commercial project launches in NCR cities will henceforth be pushed towards GRIHA certification, stated Credai. Claiming this to be a ‘need of the hour’ both Credai Western UP and Credai Gurugram claimed that increasingly builders would now on be opting for GRIHA Council certifcation which would push buildings towards adaptation of green-building norms. GRIHA stands for Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assesment and is an independent body that rates residential and commercial or institutional buildings for their environmental friendliness.

However, the GRIHA council confirmed that at present of thousands of projects in Noida, Greater Noida, and Gurugram only 93 residential projects are registered with GRIHA. “Apart from new buildings, we have also announced that existing buildings built a while ago, can be adapted to GRIHA provided they are ready to adapt to our green certification norms, “ Sanjay Seth, CEO, GRIHA Council said.

Of the 93 projects in NCR which are GRIHA compliant, 11 projects are from New Delhi, 2 projects are from Faridabad, 9 projects are from Greater Noida, 26 projects are from Noida and 45 projects are from Gurugram. There are 114 registered commercial projects in the NCR region. This is just a small slice of the national footprint of green buildings. The GRIHA rating currently has 1700 projects with a green footprint of approximately 600 million sqft registered pan India which covers residential, commercial, institutional and healthcare.

“We from Credai and as well as builders are now pushing towards GRIHA certification as sustainability of energy, water and power have become the need of the hour,” Amit Modi, vice president, Credai Western UP said. Modi said all his own project launches have been made GRIHA compliant.
According to GRIHA council, all buildings, both new construction and existing are eligible for certification under different rating variants of GRIHA. Building types include, but are not limited to offices, retail spaces, institutional buildings, hotels, hospital buildings, healthcare facilities, residences, and multi-family high-rise buildings.

“It makes sense to become GRIHA compliant as a compliant building displays as it leads to 30- 40% reduction in operational cost with negligible impact on project cost. Ensures health and safety of construction workers on site. 30 – 50% reduction in energy consumption Up to 40% reduction in end use energy consumption. Up to 40% reduction in freshwater demand. 40 – 65% reduction in building water consumption. 15 – 30% reduction in operational cost with negligible impact on project operation cost. Ensures acoustic, thermal & visual comfort for building occupants,” Seth said.
The council has now created a roadmap for reaching out to those who have still not convinced about green buildings. “The objective is now to incentivise GRIHA through state governments and double the outreach across India in the next 5 years,” Seth added.

Each state has created certain concessions for builders to help them come on board as green buildings. However, builders feel there should be more support.
“I am in favour of GRIHA compliance because of the environmental degradation and pollution in NCR, it is a necessity. What we need however is support from the government in terms of FSI benefits as well as property and income tax benefits,” Prashant Solomon, treasurer, Credai, Gurugram, said.

source- Times of India