The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has prepared a Rs 280-crore first-phase programme to make its buildings more energy-efficient, reduce electricity consumption and lower carbon emissions across the city.
The initiative will initially focus on nine energy-intensive civic properties, with hospitals, schools and other public buildings forming the pilot group. The BMC has also set a broader target of making its building portfolio more sustainable by 2030.
The BMC Charitable Hospital in Mumbai Central has been selected as one of the pilot locations. The civic body said the initiative was developed after a consultancy exercise that examined energy consumption and identified measures that could be introduced across municipal properties.
The report noted that civic buildings account for a significant share of electricity use, with hospitals alone contributing around 5.5%, followed by schools and auditoriums. The wider municipal building network includes more than 630 properties, underlining the potential scale of savings.
Among the proposed measures are improved natural and artificial lighting systems, replacement of inefficient air-conditioning units with energy-saving equipment, automated cooling controls and smart controls for pumps and electrical systems. Renewable energy solutions are also being considered for buildings with higher power requirements.
Several major civic facilities have been identified for energy upgrades, including hospitals and educational institutions across Mumbai. The programme is expected to combine energy savings with reductions in operating costs and carbon emissions.
The BMC also plans to incorporate greener construction standards into future projects. These could include better building orientation, greater use of natural ventilation and daylight, improved heat-gain management and more sustainable construction materials.
Materials such as fly-ash bricks, autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC), blended cement and recycled steel have been recommended as part of the proposed framework.
The civic body is also examining ways to create a dedicated climate-oriented budget and establish appropriate financial mechanisms to fund energy-efficiency measures across its buildings.
A BMC official said the civic body had taken consultancy support before finalising the programme. “We took consultancy from … which made a report. On that, based on the recommendations, we have decided to implement their …”
The initiative is intended to reduce electricity demand while improving the efficiency of some of Mumbai’s largest public buildings.
With a large municipal property portfolio, the BMC’s first-phase investment could serve as a foundation for a wider green retrofit programme, linking energy conservation, cleaner construction and lower operating costs across civic infrastructure.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
