Green Policy
Green Policy of IIT Mandi campus is to maintain the eco-system of the campus and conservation of nature and natural resources by utilizing skills and knowledges for developing several unique Eco-friendly solutions. Our Green Policy also includes to monitor, direct and inspect human activities, taking different actions to prevent harmful effects on the biophysical environment and natural resources ensuring no harmful effects on humans. At present, there are five major areas for monitoring, namely, Energy Management, Solid Waste Management, Wastewater Management, Environmental Air Quality Assessment and Conservation of natural flora and fauna of the area.
The main campus of IIT Mandi is situated in the Kamand valley, which is situated 18 km away from Mandi town. It is a part of the extensive West Himalayan Bio-Geography Province. The Kamand valley is surrounded by mountains. River Uhl, which is a right bank tributary of the river Beas flows down besides the campus. A minor tributary known as Kataula ki khad (nallah) flows down through the area and drains into the river Uhl.
In March 2010, under the supervision of Dr. R. J. Ranjit Daniels (Managing Trustee, Care Earth), a team of ecologists and a senior forest conservator, visited the campus and carried out a field study for 17 days.
An Ecological Management Plan (EMP) was developed in order to minimize the ecological impact caused by the sudden and rapid transformation of the landscape for guiding sustainable development of the campus without disturbing the natural riparian eco-system and environment of the campus.
The developed Ecological Management Plan has been used by the architects in developing the Master Plan and in the design of the buildings. The campus is planned such that most movement will be on foot or on bicycles. Motor vehicles will not be allowed in the academic areas and students are not permitted to have motor vehicles on campus.
The Green Panel is vigilant in reducing paving and retaining walls to a minimum and planning proper waste disposal, etc. Furthermore, in order to preserve the Bio-diversity of the Kamand campus, a project on “Ethno- botanical mapping of IIT Mandi Kamand Campus, Uhl Valley and Prashar Lake areas” has been started for mapping the existing plant species and identification of unique Medicinal plants existing on the campus and within the 10-12 km of the adjoining area.
A Herbarium of all the existing plants and an e-Herbarium are being created as a repository of the existing plant species to ensure their maintenance and preservation. A first-aid Herbal garden has been created to provide herbal products to campus residents for health and cooking. The project has developed herbal tea with beneficial properties. This has been released for local use under the name “Ambrosia de Uhl”. Efforts are also being made to evaluate the mental health benefits of Brahmi plant (grown locally in the Herbal garden).
There are four broad areas for management and monitoring of the environment of the IIT Mandi campus at present, for which, a master plan is proposed in compliance with the environmental norms.- Environmental Monitoring
- Waste Management in the campus
- Energy Efficiency and Conservation
- Beautification and bio-diversity conservation of the campus
