write about green india healthy india
Answers
Mr. Ashish Rakheja,
Chairman of National Standards Committee, ISHRAE
Green buildings have brought with them a trend in building design, where new technologies and strategies are being adopted to achieve lower energy consumption. HVAC designers play a major role in bringing this change in conjunction with Architects.
Architects & planners have now started adopting Integrated Design Process wherein the green concepts form the backbone.
There is growing awareness that Green makes business sense and the technologies do not cost more.
Green buildings are not only energy efficient but also cover different aspects likeWater efficiency, sustainable site selection, materials, healthy indoor environment etc.
With over 3 billion sft space that has been registered with different Green Building Councils in India, it will not be pessimistic to state that this movement has been a success in the country encompassing stakeholders like Government, Manufacturers,Specifiers and Owners. India now boasts of some of the highest energy efficient buildings in world that showcase our commitment to energy conservation. India has led the way in terms of adoption of new technologies like LED lamps, energy efficient HVAC systems, newer insulation materials, solar power, automation etc. However, the sheer pressure of population growth and rapid urbanization keeps posing new problems for building owners & designers and encouraging them to constantly evolve.
Air pollution in India is quite a serious issue with the major sources being fuelwood & biomass burning, fuel adulteration, vehicle emission and traffic congestion. Most large Indian cities are now counted amongst the unhealthy cities in world with Delhi topping the chart. Other Indian cities Kolkata,Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai etc are also not far behind. The poor outdoor air quality is now a burning issue in most Indian cities and poses serious health problems to its residents.
The green building standards are also evolving to include these new challenges. International rating agencies like USGBC have come out with a Wellness standard that focuses solely on quality of indoor environment for occupants covering aspects like air quality, day-lighting, views, nutrition etc. Similar efforts are also happening in other Developed countries like Australia. Thus, it is endeavor of green buildings to not only conserve energy, water, natural resources but also ensure that its occupants enjoy a healthy indoor environment.
It is noteworthy to mention that ISHRAE has also embarked on the journey to prepare a Standard on Indoor Environmental Quality and has expressed its position on the subject through a paper recently. Copy of ISHARE Position paper is also available on ISHRAE website. A group of experts are working tirelessly to publish the first IEQ Standard for the country by early 2016 and then follow it up with a rating mechanism for buildings that can be applied in conjunction with Green Building rating systems.
It’s time that Architects and Planners should start thinking out of box for going green.Newer emerging fields like Hydroponics, Vegitecture wherein living &vegetation are integrated with building design, ZEB or Zero Energy Buildings wherein renewables form part of building façade, ZWB or Zero Water Buildings wherein rainwater is stored to meet round the year demand etc are new facets of evolving Green Buildings.
Answer:
Green India Clean India
Amit Abraham has very wisely said “Clean your mind and our country will automatically get dry cleaned.” India, our beloved motherland is in the direst need of cleanliness. The general state of our cities, towns, colonies, rivers, oceans, lakes, hill-stations, parks, gardens, public transportation systems, railway stations, public toilets, etc, all indicate we as a nation are not pro-cleanliness! The nationwide ‘Swachch Bharat Abhiyan’ is another proof of our vice of apathy to the squalor lying uncleaned around us!
As the entire nation is abuzz with the cleanliness drives and campaigns under the impetus of ‘Swachch Bharat Abhiyan’ launched by the Honorable Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendera Modi, let’s contribute to it by making ourselves clean first. We must ensure we become the real participant in this crusade against the dirt and squalor in true spirit. We must start the cleanliness drive from our own home and surroundings. Our zeal and enthusiasm for the cleanliness drive is useless, if our own home and surroundings are unclean, and we are spending hours cleaning the streets in other areas.
The best way to begin this cleanliness drive is your own room, your own cupboard, your own toilet, your own kitchen, your own garbage. Do you keep your own room and surroundings clean? Are you able to maintain the cleanliness around you? If you really do, you feel the satisfaction and contentment of being clean! Now you can lend a helping hand and your expertise in keeping the neighborhood clean! This is how we must go about this cleanliness drive. Remember, only a lit candle can light other unlit candles. Similarly, people who keep themselves clean and their surroundings clean, can help other people to achieve cleanliness objectives. Let the cleanliness begin at your own home! If each one starts maintaining cleanliness at his/her own home, the entire nation will automatically become clean.
The next step after maintaining cleanliness is preserving the greenery. The need of the hour is conserving and preserving the environmental beauty and purity of the surroundings. This task is quite Herculean. The only solution to the critical environmental issues is people’s mass participation in saving the environment. Mass forestation drive, and stopping the use of fossil fuels altogether can solve this problem.
There are other alternative fuels available. The government must act strictly. There should be a ban on fossil fuels. The government must create forest belt near every city or town. Toxic emissions of industries must be strictly regularized. Installation of toxic smoke and effluents treatment plants must be mandatory at every industrial unit. With these measures strictly and immediately implemented the environmental health will improve considerably. Unless the people come forward, this mission cannot be accomplished. They must minimize their carbon footprint. They must adopt eco-friendly ways of life. Government alone cannot do anything. People will have to act proactively. We must not forget that if we have to stand in the categories of advanced nations, we will have to make our country as clean and green as them.
So, let’s turn over a new leaf; let’s not make India stink and reek; let’s make it the heaven it used to be