GRIHA-Prakriti Rating System for Sustainable Schools has been jointly developed by Association for Development and Research for Sustainable Habitats (GRIHA Council) and The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). The rating system has been developed to evaluate the environmental performance of existing day schools in India. This is the first rating system for existing buildings under the GRIHA rating system. At present, the rating has only been designed for day schools and it will be subsequently extended to day-boarding as well as residential schools.
Evolution of GRIHA
The rapid increase in Indian population and growth of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has given rise to an enormous demand for buildings with a subsequent pressure on availability of resources. Another key challenge for the built-environment of Indian cities is the diminishing availability of water for urban areas.
- GRIHA-Prakriti Rating for Sustainable Schools will be applicable only for existing school buildings in India.
- The rating system has 16 criteria.
- The criteria are divided into 6 broad categories namely: energy, comfort, water, trees, solid waste, management, and social.
- It will be mandatory to attempt certain points under each sub-group.
- The total points that a project can achieve are 50
- The rating will be done on a 1-5 star scale.
Need
Students spend almost half their waking hours – during their formative years – in schools. The values and lessons learnt at school become the foundation for students’ outlook in life. Therefore it is extremely important to ensure that students absorb maximum positive values from their time spent in schools. The key characteristics of a Sustainable schools are – noise-free classrooms with ample daylight and thermal comfort, good indoor air quality, reduced energy and water consumption, adopt measures for maintaining good sanitation, plant sufficient trees in its surrounding, recycle waste, adopt measures for universal accessibility and numerous others social and environmental activities.
Globally several studies have revealed that sustainable schools offer better and more comfortable learning environment to students. In addition, a sustainable school becomes a demonstration project through which students can learn the methods of reducing their environmental impacts – it becomes an environmental learning tool with fully functioning examples of eco-friendly strategies.
Therefore, GRIHA Council and TERI jointly developed the GRIHA-Prakriti rating system, with the intent to assist schools to reduce their environmental footprint while simultaneously empowering the next generation of citizens.
Process –
The GRIHA-Prakriti Rating process has been split into five parts:
- 1. Registration
- 2. Collecting data and filling up the forms – Team of students, under the guidance of teachers, will use the various survey forms and calculators to collect data from across their school and analyze their environmental performance.
- 3. On-site audit – Once the forms and calculators are complete, GRIHA Council will send an energy expert on site to carry out various on-site audits to cross-check the data. Post the audit, a report will be submitted to GRIHA Council
- 4. Final review – GRIHA Council will review the reports and data submitted by school and energy expert.
- 5. Award of rating
| Points achieved | Rating |
|---|---|
| 25-29 | |
| 30-34 | |
| 35-39 | |
| 40-44 | |
| 45-50 |
Certification fee
For registration fees details. Click here
Exclusive of government taxes
Note: All travel and accommodation of the energy expert on site to carry out various on-site audits and to cross-check the data, is not included in the above cost and shall be arranged by the client/school authorities or reimbursed as per actuals.
Criteria and their weightage
The criteria in the rating system address both Qualitative as well as Quantitative aspects in the rating. The rating has a total of 15 criteria plus 1 criterion for Innovation. The overall points for all criteria total up to 50, which have been equally distributed between Quantitative and Qualitative aspects as described in the table below.
| S.No. | Criterion Name | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Per capita CO₂ emissions – Building and Transport | 9 |
| 2 | Use of energy efficient appliances | 4 |
| 3 | Efficient outdoor lighting | 2 |
| 4 | Visual comfort conditions inside classrooms | 2 |
| 5 | Thermal comfort conditions inside classrooms | 2 |
| 6 | Acoustic comfort on campus | 2 |
| 7 | Indoor Air Quality – applicable for Air-Conditioned classrooms only | 2 |
| 8 | Annual water consumption | 7 |
| 9 | Rainwater harvesting system with appropriate filtration system | 3 |
| 10 | Water Quality | 2 |
| 11 | Maintaining hygienic conditions in school | 1 |
| 12 | Total number of trees in school campus | 5 |
| 13 | Adopt strategies for segregation of waste in school | 1 |
| 14 | Recycle Organic and Inorganic wastes | 2 |
| 15 | Social | 6 |
| 16 | Innovation | 2 |
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