Homecoming: Will GRIHA take the lead?

At the National Conference for GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment), Dr RK Pachauri, director general of The Energy & Resources Institute (TERI), said that GRIHA is more suited to Indian conditions than any other overseas ratings. This was the first GRIHA National Conference organized by Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) and TERI to mark the launch of the GRIHA and also to provide a platform for mutual discussions and interaction amongst the various stakeholders.
It is true that rating systems can play a very effective role in understanding performance of the buildings and thus furthering the green building movement. While the movement has taken strong roots in India, one must understand that the rating system used by many buildings in India is the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) system promoted by the ‘US Green Building Council’ (USGBC), Washington. Of course, we also have the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) advocating this system extensively. Based on my understanding of the green building movement in India, I can safely say that so far LEED has taken a lead.
However, one cannot overlook the fact that GRIHA has strong support from the government. In fact, the government has recently taken a decision to have all new central government and PSU buildings meet requirements of at least three star rating under GRIHA. The GRIHA rating system, which is based on the initial work carried out at TERI, is said to be in sync with the NBC 2005, ECBC 2007 and other IS codes.
The MNRE is implementing a Scheme on “Energy Efficient Solar/ Green Buildings” with the main objective to promote the widespread construction of energy efficient solar/ green buildings in the country through a combination of financial and promotional incentives to save a substantial amount of electricity and other fossil fuels apart from having peak load shavings in cities and towns.
To achieve the objectives, the scheme has provisions for i) providing reimbursement of 90% of the rating-cum-registration fee for buildings rated for their performance under National Rating System, ii) providing incentives to architects and consultants to design buildings on Green Architectural concepts and get them rated under GRIHA, iii) providing financial support for promotional activities, iv) providing incentives to local urban bodies, v) institution of awards/incentives for green buildings rated 5 star, and vi) organizing various other activities related to development of web based tools, e-learning modules, etc.
While the presence of two systems augurs well for the green cause, it is critical for the industry, the government and insititutions like TERI & IGBC to ensure that application of these two systems does not lead to any kind of conflict. The cause should not suffer.