ECBC AND ECSBC CODES KEY TO MAKING INDIA’S BUILDINGS ENERGY EFFICIENT: AR. SANJAY GOEL

Face2News/Ludhiana

Capacity Building Training Workshop on the theme `Energy Efficiency in Buildings’ was held at PEDA Office, Chandigarh on Friday. Ludhiana-based Ar Sanjay Goel gave a presentation on “ECBC & ECSBC: Energy Efficiency in India’s Buildings – From Code to Compliance”.

Ar Sanjay Goel, PEDA Empanelled ECBC Design Professional, stated that India’s growing urbanisation and rising demand for air-conditioning have made energy efficiency in buildings an important priority. Emphasising the need for sustainable construction practices, he highlighted the role of the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) and the updated Energy Conservation and Sustainable Building Code (ECSBC) in reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions in India’s building sector.

In his presentation, he explained how building energy codes can help India achieve its climate commitments while ensuring long-term savings and improved indoor comfort.

According to the presentation, buildings account for approximately 32 per cent of global final energy consumption and around 34 per cent of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions. In India, buildings consume more than 30 per cent of the country’s electricity. Rapid urbanisation, increasing cooling requirements and long-lasting construction decisions make energy-efficient building design essential.

The presentation identified five major areas covered by building energy codes: building envelope, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, lighting, water heating, and electrical systems and renewable energy.

It also highlighted implementation challenges, including uneven enforcement across states, shortage of trained professionals, limited capacity of local authorities and concerns over initial construction costs.

Ar Goel stressed the need for effective enforcement, professional training, digital compliance systems, incentives and independent verification. The presentation noted that ECBC 2017-compliant buildings can achieve energy savings of 25 to 50 per cent, according to the Bureau of Energy Efficiency.

The presentation concluded that stronger coordination among policymakers, developers, architects and engineers is essential to make energy-efficient construction a mainstream practice and support India’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2070.

Kulbir Singh Sandhu Joint Director PEDA; Jit Kumar Gupta, Ex-Chairman, IGBC, Chandigarh Chapter; Money Khanna, SEC (EC), PEDA; and Dr Vishal Garg, HoD, Centre for Clean Energy, Plaksha University, Mohali also spoke on the occasion.