GRIHA: The Future of our Dwellings

The thematic track ‘The GRIHA Trophy at NASA’ represented a window to the future. The session showcased winning entries from the 51 submissions received for the GRIHA Trophy for Architectural Design.

Launched at the National Association of Students of Architecture (NASA) in 2015, this year’s entry required students to design a multi-purpose complex for the competition sponsors, Experion Developers, incorporating the latest thinking on sustainable design. While Singhad College of Architecture, Pune, earned the coveted trophy, MBS School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi; Gateway College of Architecture and Design, Sonepat; and the School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi, received a special mention.

The buildings of tomorrow

As reiterated by Dr Ajay Mathur, Director General, TERI, “the student designers of today will influence the cities and buildings of tomorrow”. Given that only around 30%–35% of the infrastructure required in the future has been built till date, Mr Sanjay Seth, CEO, GRIHA Council, said that the time is right for students to work towards sustainability in this field. He advised them to incorporate resource efficiency and frugality in their future work.

For inspiration, he spoke of a project at Amsterdam, wherein Experion demolished a prison house to convert it into an energy-neutral complex of 1,350 homes, reusing 98% of the demolition waste for the new construction. The prison’s reinforcement bars became handrails for staircases and prison doors were used as bridges in the complex.

“The future is yours to seize”

“You (students) shouldn’t feel that the entire process of building sustainably is hypothetical or is going to die in books or records. That is what the future is going to be. The future is yours to seize and conquer,” said Mr Sanjeev Joshi, Senior Vice-President (Projects), Experion Developers Pvt Ltd.