The tremendous rate of real estate development across the globe, and especially young, emerging nations, is imposing immense pressure on the environment and its natural resources. With such a rapid development, there is a lot at stake when we look at important factors such as energy availability and environmental sustainability.

The real estate sector is one of the major contributors to global warming due to the extensive pollution during the construction process as well as emission of greenhouse gases during the lifecycle of the resultant buildings. On an average, buildings consume about 20% of the total energy available in a country, and this trend is increasing with every passing day.

To ensure that a genuinely 'green' residential project is not mistaken for one of the many wannabes, it is important for their developer to obtain accreditation from the green rating systems followed in India. GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment) is one such system which verifies all that a building has adhered to all the prescribed parameters, and that the materials and processes have been used at every stage of construction. Once all the requirements are met, the project is credited as a 'Green Building'.

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