Largest IIT Madras hostel at Rs. 146.75 cr has solar power, rainwater reuse and is disabled-friendly

IIT Madras inaugurated its largest hostel on the campus today at the cost of Rs 146.75 crores. The hostel enables rainwater reuse, has solar power panels and even solar water heating. It is also disabled-friendly.

IIT Madras has inaugurated its largest students hostel, which can accommodate as many as 1,200 students. Called ‘Mandakini,’ the building was constructed after an older hostel building was demolished.

It has been constructed at a total cost of Rs. 146.75 crore and was inaugurated on Monday. All hostels in the IIT Madras campus are named after Indian rivers. The best thing about the hostel is that it has multiple features that add to its ‘green’ quotient for sustainable measures.

A state-of-the-art building with 10 storeys and a built-up area of 32,180 sq.m., it is designed for 4-star rating in GRIHA, a national rating system for ‘Green Buildings’, with various green building measures adopted in the design and construction stage.

Solar power panels and solar hot water system, are adopted to reduce the energy consumption of the building.

Rainwater recharge pits have also been provided inside the building. Existing trees were retained and transplanted.

Mechanical ventilation is provided for the toilets. Low energy and Recycling materials were used for the building construction.

Reduction in water consumption is achieved by the usage of treated wastewater for flushing and landscaping. Both the surface and roof rainwater is treated and reused for potable water consumption.