The Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) India’s premier knowledge and practice institution working on the equitable, sustainable, and efficient transformation of Indian settlements, anchors ASSURE, conceived as the world’s largest organised initiative for realising high performance buildings (HPBs), in a knowledge partnership with Infosys. (Infosys, a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting and an early mover in setting up and achieving ESG goals and transitioning to low-carbon operations, is India’s largest builder of HPBs, with 30 million sq ft in current use.)
ASSURE, envisaged to be executed over 2024-30, prioritises HPBs in recognition of: (a) the large, growing, and energy and emission intensive real estate sector activity in India; (b) the prospects of massive energy and emission lock-in, poor living and working conditions, and green and circular diseconomies if business continues as usual; and, (c) the game-changing promise HPBs hold for meeting business, climate and sustainability, innovation, and job creation goals, as the experience of domestic pioneers such as Infosys has shown. ASSURE’s initial focus is on commercial buildings, given their significantly higher energy and emission intensity per unit area compared to residential buildings.
ASSURE appreciates that the promise of HPBs can only be realised with demonstration of effective implementation and a systematic effort to address the range of policy, financing, regulatory, and capacity gaps currently constraining design, construction, and retrofit of HPBs at scale. Therefore offers technical assistance for lighthouse projects to some of India’s largest real estate developers, invest significantly in capacity development of current and future practitioners, support innovation in a sector where technologies and approaches have remained fundamentally unchanged for decades, deliver a performance measurement and verification platform intended to incentivise HPB adoption and financing, and engage with policymakers and financial sector decision-makers to usher enabling policies and financing arrangements for HPBs.
ASSURE serves as a strategic catalyst for the built environment, empowering stakeholders to champion and scale high-performance buildings (HPBs). Through sustained Technical Assistance (TA) and continuous engagement, we are witnessing a market shift: contractors and consultants are increasingly adopting HPBs as a primary vehicle for resource efficiency.
A key milestone in one of our lighthouse projects demonstrated this impact. By leveraging data-driven projections and energy-efficiency calculations, the ASSURE team successfully built the technical capacity of vendor-consultants, translating theoretical efficiency into measurable performance.
Furthermore, the construction industry is increasingly aligning with ASSURE’s vision to establish HPBs as the national standard. Amidst the rapid expansion of the real estate sector, forward-thinking construction firms are seeking to “future-proof” their operations. By integrating ASSURE’s framework, these stakeholders are not only meeting the rising demand for efficient infrastructure but are also positioning themselves at the forefront of a sustainable national transition.
The National ASSURE Dialogue 2026: Scaling High Performance Buildings in India
On 7 October 2026, ASSURE, an initiative anchored by IIHS, convened policymakers, regulators, financiers, developers, business leaders, practitioners and researchers for the National ASSURE Dialogue. Three sessions examined the evidence, policy and market conditions needed to make High Performance Buildings (HPBs) commonplace.
Key takeaways:
Performance is proven. Buildings across India show substantial energy and water savings without compromising comfort or necessarily raising upfront costs. The challenge now is replication at scale.
Measured performance must be visible and comparable. Operational data on energy, water, emissions and occupant conditions should complement codes and ratings.
Policy can set the conditions. Coordinated approvals, standards, reporting, procurement and incentives can extend accountability beyond the approval stage.
Finance needs credible metrics. Standardised, verified data can link resource performance to asset value, risk and returns. Early engagement of lenders and investors, and lifecycle-based procurement, can strengthen demand.
Aligned incentives matter. Split incentives across the building value chain remain a practical barrier.
By 2030, ASSURE aims to enable 100 million sq. ft. of lighthouse HPBs, skill 12,000 youth and practitioners, and support 30 innovators.
Attaching the event proceedings and happy to connect with folks who would like to have a chat.