GRIHA Trophy at NASA encourages students to design sustainable buildings

With an aim to encourage students to design sustainably, GRIHA Council presented the coveted GRIHA Trophy to Sinhgad College of Architecture of Pune on the inaugural day of the World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) 2018 organised by TERI. The GRIHA Trophy awards were announced earlier at the 60^th edition of National Association of Students of Architecture Convention at Vagamon, Kerala. The GRIHA Trophy is awarded by The GRIHA Council in partnership with the National Association of Students of Architecture (NASA). This year’s trophy was organised with support from Experion Developers. Realty Plus attended the felicitation ceremony, where renowned architect, Sanjay Prakash, Principal Consultant, Shift, while addressing the students, said, “It is of utmost importance to inculcate a sense of sustainability in the architectural students as they are the future of the construction industry. The GRIHA Trophy encourages students to explore climate responsive design, which is the foundation of green buildings.” Considering the recent growth in the residential, commercial real estate and their inclination to get GRIHA rating, this year the students were required to design a multi-purpose complex for Experion Developers. The intent was to incorporate the latest thinking on sustainable design with capabilities to improve thermal and visual performance by using massing, solar orientation, wind movement, day lighting, passive cooling systems to suit according to the climatic conditions of Gurugram. Expressing his views on the collaboration to Realty Plus, Sanjeev Joshi, Senior Vice President (Projects), M/S Experion Developers Pvt Ltd, said, that “The trophy is an opportunity for the developers to stay abreast with the budding minds of next generation architects and collaborate with GRIHA, India’s own green building rating system, in the drive towards sustainability.” The competition this year, witnessed an overwhelming response from the students with participation from 55 colleges. The entries were evaluated by an eminent panel of members, comprising Ar. Jaisim Krishna Rao and Ar. George Chitoor, along with Mr. M. Ramachandran, representing the sponsor. The designs were evaluated on innovation in architectural design, sustainability in design, and innovative systems.