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K Raheja's corporate office at BKC
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An increasing number of developers are now opting for certified, eco-friendly green projects. Their long-term costs benefits and potential to attract eco-conscious tenants are significant benefits in a depressed market, writes Rajesh Kulkarni.

A quiet green revolution is steadily sweeping across India’s real estate development business. A growing number of leading developers are voluntarily adopting the eco-friendly ethos by opting for Leadership and Environmental and Energy Design (LEED)-IGBC (India Green Building Council) certified buildings and projects.

Typically projects that come under the green purview are those that lay a strong emphasis on the use of environmentally friendly building materials, effective waste management and efficient energy systems. These are designed to substantially reduce or eliminate negative environmental impacts and improve existing unsustainable design, construction and operational practices.

At the last count, there were 30 LEED certified green buildings in India, while another 320 commercial and residential projects were registered to go green, with Mumbai alone accounting for 60 projects.

On the residential project front, three projects have got the pre-certified status from the IGBC. These include two Mumbai projects, Mahindra Splendour at Bhandup and Palais Royale in Worli, which have been pre-certified with platinum status, the highest rating possible, by the IGBC under its residential rating scheme (Green Home Projects) launched earlier in May. The third residential project is in Hyderabad.

Taking the lead

Driving this trend towards eco-friendly, sustainable urban development, are realty majors like the Mumbai-based K Raheja Corp, which has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) for the facilitation of LEED certification of its various projects on a pan-India basis.

“All new projects undertaken by the company will now be LEED rated green building projects,” avers Shabbir Kanchwala, associate vice president (project coordination), K Raheja Corp.

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“This could be a green office, green home, green mall or even a green hotel. The important aspect of this agreement is that all our architects, engineers and sales personnel are now fully trained in LEED processes giving us the capability of in-house LEED implementation.”   

Taking the move a step further, the company’s office building at Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) has won the prestigious LEED-GOLD certification from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) in the CS category.

This is in addition to the company’s other ongoing projects that are registered under LEED–IGBC across cities like Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. Kanchwala declined to give specific details of their ongoing green projects stating reasons of confidentiality.

Also in the fray is another Mumbai-based developer Kalpataru Group whose six-storey commercial project, Kalpataru Square at Andheri East, Mumbai, is one of only three buildings in the city to be assigned the Platinum pre-certification LEEDS-CS from the USGBC.

“The project combines all the features of a high performance building with sustainable design and construction, while maintaining a balanced approach towards environmental responsibility, resource efficiency and occupant comfort,” says Anuj Munot, director, Kalpataru Ltd.

According to Munot, Kalpataru’s ongoing green building initiatives have been dictated by the twin needs of opting for sustainable development and a growing demand for such spaces by their customers. “There is a growing awareness of the benefits of green building leading to an increasing demand for high performance buildings that are environmentally responsible,” he affirms.

Lodha Group’s ITHINk Techno Campus that covers an area of approximately two million sq ft at Kanjurmarg, a central Mumbai suburb, also counts its LEED certified green project status as one of its many USPs. Other key features at this sprawling IT campus include buildings with 100% DG power backup, flat slab construction, uninterrupted power supply (from internal power grids) advanced building and property management facilities, a sewage treatment plant and large floor plates.

The group has about six commercial projects in the development stage, encompassing an area of approximately two million sq ft at Mumbai, with a majority to be commissioned over the next two years.

 “We would look at green certification for our residential projects in the future, but for now it’s only our commercial and retail projects that will be certified as green projects,” clarifies Bharat Dhuppar, the company’s senior vice president (marketing).

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