Odisha to Pioneer Sustainable Urban Development through Low-Carbon Building Practices

Bhubaneswar,31st October 2025:Odisha has taken a significant step forward in its journey towards sustainable and climate-resilient urban growth with a one-day workshop on “Mainstreaming Low-Carbon Building Materials to Transform the Built Environment in Odisha”, jointly organised by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bhubaneswar and Development Alternatives in the IIT Madras campus.

Smt. Usha Padhee, IAS, Principal Secretary, Housing and Urban Development Department, Government of Odisha, graced the occasion as the Chief Guest. In her address, she emphasised the need for collective conviction and conscious planning to achieve a greener and more sustainable future.

“Whatever we do in construction must consciously contribute to a healthier environment. We can only progress if we believe we can — and ensure our development is greener and eco-friendly,”
said Smt. Padhee.

She highlighted the Government’s strong commitment to fostering sustainable urbanisation through regulatory reforms, capacity building, and entrepreneurship incentives. Smt. Padhee further noted that promoting innovative materials such as Construction and Demolition (C&D) waste products and Limestone Calcined Clay Cement (LC3) could be transformative for the construction sector in Odisha.

The workshop brought together a diverse group of industry, academia, and government stakeholders to deliberate on strategies for mainstreaming low-carbon materials in the State’s infrastructure ecosystem.

Prof. Manu Santhanam, IIT Madras, who attended as the Guest of Honour, underlined the urgency for the construction industry to adopt low-carbon materials as mainstream solutions and optimise raw material use for both structural and non-structural applications.

The event reaffirmed Odisha’s vision to align urban development with India’s net-zero goals and the national aspiration of becoming a developed nation by 2047. Through such initiatives, the State continues to lead by example in promoting sustainable infrastructure and environmental stewardship.