LEED 2011 for India

About IGBC
IGBC, which is a part of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), has pioneered the countrys green building movement since 2001. IGBC has extensively engaged various stakeholders of the building sector such as architects, builders, developers, manufacturers, consultants, etc., to take the movement forward.

IGBC Green Building Rating Systems:

To facilitate the adoption of green building practices relevant to the local climate and regional practices for various building types, IGBC has developed new green building rating programmes. These rating systems are voluntary, consensus based, and market-driven building programmes and are designed to address national priorities. As a result, IGBC rating systems enjoys high credibility and wide acceptance in the Indian building industry. Today, India stands amongst the top 3 countries of the world in terms of green buildings with a footprint of 1022 million square feet and 1426 buildings.

Launch of LEED 2011 for India:

Over the past one year, IGBC has collaboratively engaged its wide stakeholder base in upgrading the existing LEED rating system, thus bringing out the new version. Christened as LEED 2011 For India, this new version has been indigenised based on the international LEED platform and has been developed through extensive participation of stakeholders of the Indian building sector. The LEED 2011 for India - Core & Shell was launched by IGBC during Green Building Congress 2011, marking a major milestone for the Indian Green Building movement.

Major Changes in LEED 2011 For India:

The LEED 2011 version has been upgraded based on cumulative experiences from the implementation of green building projects in India. The major improvements include: Extensively promotes local regulations in areas where the reference codes are not widely available to Indian building industry Adopts the latest versions of standards & codes to benchmark Indian buildings with the most evolved international green practices

 Indigenises sustainable transport requirements under site sustainability, by accommodating many types of eco-friendly local conveyances Enhances energy and water efficiency baselines on par with best international standards & practices. Also addresses the interlinked balance between water and energy by encouraging use of innovative wastewater treatment to meet airconditioning makeup Encourages passive cooled buildings by adopting comfort temperature range to Indian conditions Reduces the radius of Regional materials to those sourced within a distance of 400 Km, proportionate to the geographical size of India Promotes naturally ventilated buildings through prescriptive measures for ventilation and IEQ standards to benchmark naturally ventilated buildings Extends the Low-VOC requirement to cover a wider variety of flooring systems, adhesives & sealants etc., for better IAQ standards

Conclusion:
The green building concept in India is advancing rapidly and the launch of LEED India 2011 marks a significant milestone in the movement. Over the years, the rating systems of IGBC has evolved as a National rating system by choice, which sets global standards in performance. This upgraded version is expected to leapfrog the green building movement in India and enable India to emerge as a global leader in green buildings.