PM SVANidhi: Advancing Financial Inclusion for Street Vendors = Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

 1. What is PM SVANidhi?

PM SVANidhi is a Central Sector Scheme supporting street vendors through affordable working capital, financial inclusion and social protection measures.

2. Why was it introduced?

PM SVANidhi was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide affordable working capital loans to street vendors whose businesses had been severely affected. As the first dedicated micro-credit scheme for street vendors, who constituted a significant part of the informal workforce and often had limited access to formal credit, it aimed to support the growth of their businesses while promoting financial inclusion.

3. When was PM SVANidhi launched and which Ministries implement it?

The scheme was launched in June 2020. It is a joint responsibility of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and the Department of Financial Services (DFS).

4. What is the extended lending period under PM SVANidhi?

Building on the strong achievements and measurable impact, the government has approved restructuring and extension of PM SVANidhi. The lending period has been extended until March 2030.

5. Who is a Street Vendor/hawker?

Any person engaged in the vending of articles, goods, wares, food items, or merchandise of daily use or offering services to the public in a street, footpath, pavement, etc., from a temporary built-up structure or by moving from place to place. The goods supplied by them include vegetables, fruits, ready-to-eat street food, etc., and the services include barber shops, cobblers, laundry services, etc.

6. What financial assistance and benefits are provided under PM SVANidhi?

Street vendors receive collateral-free working capital loans of ₹15,000, ₹25,000 and ₹50,000 through progressive loan tranches. The scheme also provides interest subsidy, credit guarantee support and UPI-linked RuPay Credit Cards up to ₹30,000 for eligible vendors.

7. Is there any incentive for timely/ early repayment of the loan?

Yes. PM SVANidhi encourages timely and early repayment by providing an interest subsidy of 7 percent per annum. In addition, vendors who repay their loans on time become eligible for higher loan tranches in subsequent cycles.

8. How long will it take to get the loan approved?

PM SVANidhi leverages an end-to-end digital platform to streamline the loan application and approval process. On average, it takes about 23 days for a loan to be processed and approved, subject to verification and completion of required formalities.

9. How can street vendors holding a Letter of Recommendation (LoR) or Certificate of Vending (CoV) apply for a loan?

A street vendor holding a valid Letter of Recommendation or Certificate of Vending can apply for a PM SVANidhi loan through the scheme portal or Mobile App or with the assistance of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs).

10. How many street vendors have benefited under PM SVANidhi?

More than 75.5 lakh street vendors have availed over 112 lakh loans under PM SVANidhi so far.

11. What is the total financial assistance disbursed under the scheme?

Loans amounting to more than ₹17,800 crore have been disbursed to street vendors across the country. Beneficiaries have also received nearly ₹800 crore through interest subsidies and digital cashback incentives.

12. How does PM SVANidhi promote digital and financial inclusion among street vendors?

The scheme encourages digital transactions through cashback incentives up to ₹1,600 and financial literacy support. More than 55 lakh vendors completed over 841 crore digital transactions worth nearly ₹8.96 lakh crore.

13. What is SVANidhi se Samriddhi and how does it support beneficiaries?

SVANidhi se Samriddhi profiles beneficiary families and links them with eight selected Central Government welfare schemes. More than 50 lakh families have been profiled and over 1.52 crore welfare benefits sanctioned under the initiative.

14. What training and capacity-building support is provided under PM SVANidhi?

The scheme provides training in financial literacy, digital literacy and food safety practices through collaboration with FSSAI. Around 6 lakh street food vendors have been trained on food safety and hygiene standards.

15. What impact has PM SVANidhi created on livelihoods and financial empowerment?

Independent studies conducted in 2023 and 2025 found improved business sustainability, higher incomes and stronger financial inclusion among beneficiaries. Nearly 95 percent of beneficiaries accessed formal institutional credit for the first time through the scheme. Around 30 percent of beneficiaries accessed additional credit beyond PM SVANidhi loans. Beneficiary incomes recorded an average annual increase of nearly 20 percent.

16. How has PM SVANidhi strengthened social inclusion and urban livelihoods?

Nearly 46 percent of beneficiaries are women and around 70 percent belong to marginalized communities. The scheme strengthened micro-enterprises, local supply chains and integration of vendors with Urban Local Bodies.

Moving Towards Effective City Government a Framework for Million Plus Cities

 

A Comprehensive Framework to Promote Affordable Housing

 

Evolution of Urban Planning in India

 

NATIONAL BUILDING CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS 2026

 

NAKSHA (NAtional geospatial Knowledge-based land Survey of urban HAbitations)

NAKSHA (NAtional geospatial Knowledge-based land Survey of urban HAbitations) is a pioneering one-year pilot programme launched by the Department of Land Resources (DoLR) under the Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP). It aims to revolutionize urban land records across 157 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in 27 States and 3 Union Territories, covering over 4484 sq. km and benefiting 1.5 crore+ citizens.

Using cutting-edge aerial and field survey techniques, NAKSHA is building a comprehensive, GIS-integrated database of urban land parcels. The initiative is being implemented with the technical support of Survey of India, NICSI, MPSeDC, and five national Centres of Excellence.

Why NAKSHA:

With over 600 million people projected to reside in Indian cities by 2031, the need for accurate and accessible urban land records has never been more critical. NAKSHA plays a pivotal role in addressing this demand by enabling transparent property ownership, streamlining urban planning processes, and supporting better infrastructure development. It also contributes to enhancing municipal revenue collection, strengthening disaster preparedness and response, and boosting public trust and private investment through reliable, legally certified land data.

About NAKSHA Programme:

The National geospatial Knowledge-based land Survey of urban Habitations (NAKSHA) programme is a city survey initiative under the existing Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP).

It is spearheaded by the Department of Land Resources (DoLR), under the Ministry of Rural Development.

Under the new initiative, maps of towns and cities will be prepared. The programme has been launched as a pilot across 152 urban local bodies in 26 states.

The cities selected meet two criteria: area less than 35 sq km, and population less than 2 lakhs. The pilot will be completed in a year.

The Survey of India is the technical partner for NAKSHA programme which is responsible for conducting aerial surveys and providing orthorectified imagery, through third party vendors, to state and Union Territory governments.

Three Methodologies of Aerial Survey:
1.2D Nadir Camera – ORI, DEM, 2D dataset : (80 ULBs)
Oblique Angle Camera (5 cameras) – ORI, DEM, 3D reality Model, 3D GIS dataset: (48 ULBs)
Oblique Angle Camera (5 cameras) and LiDAR sensor – ORI, DEM, 3D reality Model, 3D GIS dataset, Bare earth: (24 ULBs)

What is a City

 A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agreed definition of the lower boundary for their size. In a narrower sense, a city can be defined as a permanent and densely populated place with administratively defined boundaries whose members work primarily on non-agricultural tasks. Cities generally have extensive systems for housing, transportation, sanitation, utilities, land use, production of goods, and communication. Their density facilitates interaction between people, government organizations, and businesses, sometimes benefiting different parties in the process, such as improving the efficiency of goods and service distribution.

The city, one of the world’s biggest phenomenon of the 21st century has evolved greatly over the centuries, particularly in terms of its size, form, structure and composition, while largely maintaining its importance in local and regional development. In just 65 years, the world has experienced a population shift from rural to urban, as witnessed by an increase in the global population living in urban areas from 29.6% in 1950 to 54% in 2015.

Urban Invest Window (UiWIN)

Urban Invest Window (UiWIN) is an initiative of HUDCO, under the guidance of the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs. Urban Invest Window which will act as – One-stop, investment facilitator for our Indian cities.

India is witnessing one of the fastest-growing urban transformations in the world. By 2036, over 60 Crore Indians will call cities, their home. To support this fast urban growth, we need huge infrastructure investments, in our cities. However, our Urban Local Bodies still face multidimensional challenges — from capacity building to project preparation, from fund mobilization to investment facilitation. Urban Invest Window is expected to address these issues of our Urban Local Bodies.

UiWIN will facilitate more investments from multiple sources — which are faster and on better terms, like attract private investments by developing PPP projects, long-tenor, concessional and competitive financing from multilaterals like World Bank, ADB etc.

HUDCO will repurpose its pan India network of 20 Regional Offices, to act as Urban Invest Window(s). In a Hub and Spoke model, it will handhold the cities at every step of project journey — from identification of projects to their technical & financial structuring, from capital mobilization to project implementation. Working closely with the State Government and the ULBs, UiWIN will build a pipeline of bankable, investment-ready urban projects. UiWIN will connect the cities with investors - both domestic and global. 

UiWin will be a transformative initiative, aiming to double urban investments in next 5 years by - supporting in governance reforms, better financial management and improving the municipal competency. It will facilitate more urban investments through, enhanced and accelerated lending from HUDCO for urban projects, structure PPP projects & attract private investments; long-tenor, concessional and competitive financing from multilaterals like WB, ADB & others; support issuance of Municipal & pooled bonds access for ULBs; Land value capture & monetization; use Convergence with Central & State schemes for additional funding; and most importantly, help in Capacity building of ULB officials. 

National Urban Digital Mission (NUDM)

The National Urban Digital Mission (NUDM) will create a shared digital infrastructure for urban India, working across the three pillars of people, process, and platform to provide holistic support to cities and towns. It will institutionalise a citizen-centric and ecosystem-driven approach to urban governance and service delivery in 2022 cities by 2022, and across all cities and towns in India by 2024.

• NUDM will create a shared digital infrastructure that can consolidate and cross-leverage the various digital initiatives of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, enabling cities and towns across India to benefit from holistic and diverse forms of support, in keeping with their needs and local challenges.
• NUDM is citizen-centric, ecosystem-driven, and principles-based in both design and implementation. NUDM has articulated a set of governing principles, and inherits the technology design principles of the National Urban Innovation Stack (NUIS), whose strategy and approach was released by MoHUA in February, 2019. The principles in turn give rise to standards, specifications, and certifications, across the three pillars of people, process, and platforms.
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• National Urban Digital Mission Objectives

> National Urban Digital Mission creates an institutional approach where citizens are at the center of urban governance, improving services through digital solutions.
> National Urban Digital Mission will create a shared digital infrastructure for cities and towns, uniting various digital initiatives across the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
> The National Urban Digital Mission intends to enhance the capacity of all Urban Local Bodies, from the largest to the smallest, to serve citizens and build partnerships for addressing local challenges.

• National Urban Digital Mission Significance
• National Urban Digital Mission provides support for existing digital initiatives from MoHUA to offer diverse support to cities and towns, addressing local needs and challenges.
• NUDM follows the National Urban Innovation Stack (NUIS), ensuring technology design principles are followed for urban governance. This includes setting standards, specifications, and certifications for people, processes, and platforms.
• NUDM aims to strengthen the urban ecosystem by unlocking the power of urban data, enabling cities to tackle complex problems quickly and effectively.
• National Urban Digital Mission Initiatives
• India Urban Data Exchange (IUDX): Developed in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), IUDX secure sharing of urban data across cities and local bodies.
• SmartCode Platform: A platform designed to provide open-source code for urban governance applications, helping Urban Local Bodies to leverage existing digital solutions and customize them for local needs.
• New Smart Cities Website 2.0 and Geospatial Management Information System (GMIS): The updated website serves as a central hub for all Smart Cities initiatives, offering easy access to resources, updates, and information related to the mission.

SmartCode Platform

SmartCode is a platform that enables all ecosystem stakeholders to contribute to a repository of open-source code for various solutions and applications for urban governance. It is designed to address the challenges that ULBs face in the development and deployment of digital applications to address urban challenges, by enabling cities to take advantage of existing codes and customising them to suit local needs, rather than having to develop new solutions from scratch. As a repository of open-source software, the source code available on the platform will be free to use without any licensing or subscription fees, thus limiting costs to those involved with customising the code and developing a locally-relevant solution.

India Urban Data Exchange (IUDX)

The India Urban Data Exchange has been developed in partnership between the Smart Cities Mission and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. IUDX serves as a seamless interface for data providers and data users, including ULBs, to share, request, and access datasets related to cities, urban governance, and urban service delivery. IUDX is an open-source software platform which facilitates the secure, authenticated, and managed exchange of data amongst various data platforms, 3rd party authenticated and authorised applications, and other sources. As the number of cities on IUDX expands, this will scale up to uniform and seamless sharing between data producers and data consumers across urban India.  IUDX is designed to address the problem of data silos, both within and across cities. Cities generate large volumes of data, which are recorded by a wide range of entities, both within government and across industry, academia, and civil society. The combination of these datasets can enable rapid innovation, as well as a better understanding of and planning for urban needs and challenges.  IUDX creates a secure and reliable channel for data producers or owners to share their data, with complete control over what is shared and with whom, in order to enable sharing while addressing security and privacy protections by design.

National Urban Information System

The Ministry of  Urban Development launched the National Urban Information System (NUIS) Scheme in March, 2006 on National Mission Mode. This scheme was launched for developing GIS database for 137 towns/cities (currently 152 towns/cities) in India. The maps prepared will be at two scales i.e. 1:10000 & 1:2000. In addition to this under NUIS scheme utility mapping will for done at 1:1000 scale for 24 towns.

The Spatial and attribute databases thus generated will be useful for preparation of Master/ Development plans, detailed town planning schemes and serve as decision support for e-governance.

Components of NUIS Scheme:

The Scheme comprises of broadly two major components:

1) Urban Spatial Information System (USIS) to meet the spatial requirements of urban planning. It will help in making GIS based multi hierarchical data base to support Master/Zonal plan preparation and help Urban Local Bodies in administration and utilities management. This is to be achieved by having a 3 tier GIS database for each city/town which will support the main objectives of Urban Management & Planning.

• 1:10,000 scale GIS with parameters of spatial and attribute information that will be the core of Master Planning and Zonal Planning exercises in urban Settlements.
• 1:2,000 scale GIS database with parameters of spatial and attribute information in support of detailed town planning Schemes and urban administration.
• Establish a 1:1000 scale utilities GIS on a pilot basis with inclusion of power, water-supply, sewerage and other utilities that will support Utilities Planning and Management in urban settlements.

2) National Urban Databank and Indicators (NUDB&I) to develop indicators for supporting National Urban Observatory (NUO) by integrating the database of all states and towns at TCPO/MoUD. Enable the establishment of a Local Urban Observatory (LUO) in each State which will integrate the NUDB&I databases for all towns within the State.

This will also provide necessary inputs/report on the status and conditions of urban areas to MoUD, Planning Commission, States indicators for National Urban Observatory (NUO) include:

• Socio Economic development
• Infrastructure
• Transportation
• Environmental management
• Local authorities
• Housing

This data will be used by municipal corporations/ municipalities & ULBs to fulfill their roles assigned to them under 12th Schedule of the 74th CAA. For successful implementation of this scheme data collected by USIS and NUDBI will be integrated and used for better plan making and thus ensure planned development by fulfilling the data needs.

Limitations of NUIS

• Town planning is a state subject so developing standard indicators for all town and cities will be difficult.
• Although selection procedure for towns and cities covered under the scheme is rational but some important urban centers remain uncovered
• Fund allocation for the scheme is very less when compared to other schemes like JNNURM as the per capita expenditure is about Rs.5.60/- as compared to Rs.4500/- for JNNURM for making CDPs.
• Coordination at different level is essential to fulfill the objective
• Skilled man power is required for various work at different levels.

Effectiveness of Alternative Models of Land Use Planning

 

Urban Infrastructure in India - An Overview

 

GREEN AND BLUE INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT IN URBAN AREAS

Green and Blue Infrastructure (GBI)are characterized as “Green-Blue Urban Grids” by embracing storm water management, climate adaptation and multifunctional green space. A typical blue-green infrastructure project may have several socioeconomic and environmental benefits but its implementation in brown field city and creation of new GBI is a challenging task for ULBs. It is very important to bring functional, social, and economic changes through GBI developments in distant areas/districts in urban areas. In outlook of GBI, urban area may cherish as integrated system of ‘socio-ecological’ and ‘socio-blue economy’. In socio-ecological context, planning and design of urban green spaces create socio-environmental integrity whereas socio-blue economy provides social and economic sustainability to the communities through various micro economical activities. In fact, GBI keep cities more sustainable with ‘greater likelihood’ and ‘sufficient livelihood’.

The Green Infrastructure (GI) refers to nature-based solutions to address various environmental and social challenges whereas Blue Infrastructure (BI) refers to the network of water bodies and water management systems to provide environmental, social, and economic benefits by managing water which include both natural and engineered features. In other words, green infrastructure is considered a subset of "Sustainable and Resilient Infrastructure". It includes low-carbon infrastructure such as renewable energy infrastructure, public transport systems, etc. which contribute less emission, less carbon footprints and keep urban areas more clean and green.

Blue Infrastructure and Green Infrastructure: An Integrated Understanding:

Blue Infrastructure and Green Infrastructure termed as Blue-Green Infrastructure (BGI) includes both "blue" elements such as rivers, lakes, ponds, wetlands, green roofs, etc. which bring about water flow & storage, whereas "green" features such as parks, urban forests, green walls, roof-top gardens, etc. help with infiltration, filtration, evaporation, transpiration, etc. Sometimes, Blue-Green Infrastructure is also characterized as “Green-Blue Urban Grids” by embracing storm water management, climate adaptation and multifunctional green space.

 In broader sense, Blue-Green Infrastructure may also be considered as a component of sustainable urban drainage system which is integrated into urban planning to manage storm water. Therefore, sustainable urban drainage plan is always part and parcel of Master Plan of any town and city to avoid water logging, urban flooding, etc. 

Further, Blue-Green Infrastructure is also associated with Gray Infrastructure. Gray Infrastructure is nothing but conventional storm water management system such as pipes, culverts, basins, etc. which are designed to collect and convey storm water away from urban areas. Table 1 describes comparative understanding of green infrastructure, blue infrastructure and gray infrastructure as shown below. 

Integrated Understanding of Green Infrastructure, Blue Infrastructure and Gray Infrastructure

Sl. No.	Infrastructure(s)	Understanding(s)	Example(s)
1.	Green Infrastructure	Natural Process by utilizing natural elements to manage storm water, improve water quality, reduce urban heat effects, etc.	Green Roofs: Roofs covered with green vegetation.  Rain Gardens: Depressions in the landscape to collect and filter rainwater. Permeable Pavements: Pavements that allow water to pass through into the ground.  Urban Forests:  Trees and other vegetation in urban areas.
2.	Blue Infrastructure	It refers to all types of water bodies (surface and underground) available in urban areas. It is useful for water management and better micro climate at city level in urban areas.	Surface Water Bodies:  Lakes, rivers, canals, etc. Underground Water Sources: Aquifers, wells, springs, artesian wells, hand-pump well, etc.
3.	Gray Infrastructure	It is traditional approach to manage storm water and removethe same from urban areas speedily. In other words, Gray infrastructure focuses on both traditional and engineered solutions used for managing storm water in urban areas.	Storm Water Management: Gutters, drains, pipes, detention basins, storm water sewer lines, etc. Wastewater Management:  Sewage treatment plants, pipelines, etc.

In fact, Gray infrastructure is crucial as it need technically design and proper maintenance otherwise may cause situations like water logging, urban flooding, etc. and damage water sources and qualities.

Green and Blue Infrastructure Development in Urban Areas: Master Plan Approach:

A Master Plan of any town /city is prepared to guide planned development through various policies and development strategies to ensure coordinated and sustainable growth. In fact, it is a comprehensive and legal document guiding the city's development for a specific period, typically 20 years. Green infrastructure and Blue infrastructure are important components and hence their developments are very crucial for livable and healthy city but several Indian cities have seen a decline in green and blue features due to rapid urbanization and haphazard development. One side, built up areas of the cities is increasing and other side green spaces, water bodies, etc. are shrinking. Many Indian cities have promoted green and blue infrastructure development through Master Plan provisions. The main aim is to enhance existing blue systems in the city through restoration and promote green development along them through planned strategies.

Govt. Initiatives for Green and Blue Infrastructure Development

Sl. No.	Initiatives	Govt. Agency	Description	Prominence
1.	Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT)	MoHUA, Govt. of India.	It focused on providing basic amenities like water supply and sanitation, with an emphasis on green spaces and water body rejuvenation.	Green and Blue Infrastructure Development
2.	AMRUT 2.0	MoHUA, Govt. of India.	AMRUT 2.0 expands its scope to include water security, sewage management, and the rejuvenation of water bodies.	Green and Blue Infrastructure Development
3.	Smart Cities Mission	MoHUA, Govt. of India.	Preserving and developing open spaces, parks, playgrounds, and recreational spaces in order to enhance the quality of life, reduce urban heat effects in urban areas.	Green Infrastructure Development
4.	Nagar Van Yojana	Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Govt. of India.	Nagar Van Yojana (NVY) scheme was launched in 2020, for creation of Nagar Vans in urban areas, which promotes urban forestry by involving local communities, NGOs, educational institutions, local bodies, etc. Nagar Van Yojana envisages creating 1000 Nagar Van / Nagar Vatika in Cities having Municipal Corporation/Municipal council/Municipality/Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) for providing wholesome healthy living environment for the residents and thus contributing to growth of clean, green, healthy and sustainable cities.	Urban Forests
5.	Green Highways (Plantation, Transplantation, Beautification &Maintenance) Policy, 2015	MoRTH	Promote greening and development eco-friendly National Highway corridors across the country with participation of farmers, private sector and government institutions including Forest Department. The main objective was to reduce the impact of air pollution and dust by planting trees and shrubs along the National Highways. They act as natural sink for air pollutants and arrest soil erosion at the embankment slopes.	Eco-friendly NH Corridors
6.	"Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment 2023-24" - Part-III (Urban Planning Reforms)	DoE, MoF	Strengthening Natural Ecosystem of Urban Areas through Urban Planning Aspects of the Reform: Policy interventions for urban water management and implementation of projects on ground for creation of Sponge Cities, including Urban Forests. Objectives of these reforms were to restore the city's capacity to absorb, infiltrate, store, purify, drain, and manage rainwater and regulate the water cycle. Master Plan for Sponge City is to be complemented with a Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) document and enforcement mechanism. States is also to develop urban forests that can be defined as networks or systems of groups of trees, located in urban and peri-urban areas	i. Promotion of Sponge Cities for Sustainability (Conservation &Rejuvenation of Water bodies) ii.Promotion of Riverfront Development iii.Creation of Urban Forests

According to the World Economic Forum, green and blue infrastructure is one of proactive adaptation for sustainable development, and enhanced quality of life for urban populations. The outcomes of research shows that 'green' and 'blue' infrastructure such as urban parks, wetlands, bioswales & water plazas, etc. mitigate physical risks and foster social cohesion critical to surviving and recovering from crises. In this context, it is imperative to understand that restoration & preservation of existing BGI and creation of new BGI are optimistic approach for sustainable, resilient and healthy urban environments in Indian cities. This approach integrates natural features such as parks, wetlands, urban forests and water bodies with built infrastructure which is very much desirable for addressing climate change, improving water management, and enhancing quality of life. 

Green and Blue infrastructure (GBI) may be recognized as a tool for mitigating the impacts of urban heat islands, flooding, water scarcity, rapid storm water runoff, etc. Further, GBI offers improved public health and well-beings of the city residents through improved air &water quality, increased green spaces for recreation, cooling effects, etc. The need of the hour is to integrate GBI with existing infrastructure particularly with existing gray infrastructure. It requires holistic and effective approach to urban development and hence Govt. incentives and financial assistances are required through various schemes and programs for the same. 

Presently, innovation and technological advancements are required for optimizing GBI design and implementation. The bioswales, rain gardens, etc. as landscape elements need to be created for capturing , filtering, and infiltrating storm water runoff along roadsides and in open spaces, parks, etc. Furthermore, blue-green action plan with innovative solutions like blue and blue-green roofs, painting of roof surfaces, walls to absorb rainwater, reduce storm water runoff, etc. need to be implemented by the Urban Local Bodies. Apart from green spaces, planting more trees, creating new urban forests, etc. it is also important to use cool pavements through using light-colored or reflective pavements to reduce heat absorption, moderate surface temperatures, etc. for urban cooling effects. It is a high time to restore and create wet lands for detention and filter rainwater, replenish groundwater and enhance biodiversity.

NET ZERO ENERGY GREEN BUILDINGS

  Net zero energy or zero energy building is a building with net zero energy consumption during its operation & maintenance on annual basis. Thus in a net zero energy building, total amount of energy consumed by the building on an annual basis is equal to the amount of renewable energy generated in the building either onsite or offsite. When such amount of renewable energy is generated at site, the building is known as onsite net zero energy building otherwise offsite net zero energy building. When generated energy is more than consumed, it is called energy plus or positive energy building. The objective of net zero or net zero plus buildings is to contribute in saving environment and contribute less in generating greenhouse gases during its operation while objective of green buildings is to construct eco-friendly energy efficient and water efficient building having comfortable hygienic indoor air quality. Therefore, ideally a building should be net zero energy green building conforming to sustainable development, environment friendly and for wellbeing of occupants.

Features of a Net Zero and Green Building:

 I. Features of Net Zero Buildings 

• Building envelope and its orientation to minimize energy consumption and HVAC loads. 
• Energy efficiency measures by adoption energy conservation through energy efficient fans, lights, ACs, electric pumps, and other electric equipment. 
• Energy generation through renewable energy resources like solar, wind, bio mass etc. 
• Regeneration of electric power through nonconventional sources like regenerative lifts, floor friction measures. 
• Providing energy efficient gadgets and equipment requiring electric power. 
• Bringing down the HVAC load by circulation of cool water in the cooling system for example through geothermal system.
• Providing sun reflective building materials, paints and coatings during summer and sun absorbing during winter. 
• Providing energy insulation in the outer walls/ surface and roof. 
• Energy efficient design of the building. 
• Constructing smart homes avoiding wastage of energy. 
• Reduction of carbon footprint

II. Features of Green Buildings 

• Energy efficient 
• Water efficient
• Comfortable and hygienic indoor air quality 
• Green and sustainable building materials 
• Waste minimization 
• Structural efficiency 
• Durability and safety 
• Preservation of natural materials 
• Reduction of air, water and noise pollution 
• Welfare of construction employees at site and reduction of adverse health impact during its occupancy 
• Innovations in adoption of eco-friendlymeasures

Cost of Net Zero Energy Building:

Green buildings are reported to be costly compared to conventional buildings by 2 to 18% and payback period is reported to be varying from 3 to 7 years. Since life of a permanent RCC framed building is considered to be 75 years, in long run it always becomes economic. Vyas and Jha (2018) have reported that average increase in initial cost of green building is 3.10% for three-star rating and 9.37% for five-star green building. A five star rated building can be considered equivalent to platinum rated building. Further, they have reported that discounted payback period for green buildings is 2.04 to 7.56 years for three-star and 2.37 to 9.14 years for five-star rated projects. Thus, discounted payback period and additional cost in case of green buildings depend upon the green rating though it is obvious.

India’s Commitment:

India has promised to cut its emissions to net zero by 2070. Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the pledge and first time India has set a net zero target, at the Glasgow summit. Net zero, or becoming carbon neutral, means not adding to the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. India has large network of thermal power plants as such it has to switch over to carbon neutral power generation resources. Therefore, it is likely that hydro power plants will also be in the ambit of net zero mission of carbon free emissions including renewable resources like wind, solar, tidal and bio mass power generation. Net zero carbon emissions can be achieved through onsite or offsite green power generation.