Corona-Hit Construction Industry's Sole Hope Is Going Green With Green Cement, Explains Himansh Verma, Chairman Navrattan Group

COVID-19, which has affected millions of lives already, will continue to impact lives across the world, in terms of poverty, hunger and loss of livelihood. India’s construction industry is the second-largest employer after the agriculture sector and currently employs about 60 million people. With this industry facing a loss of Rs. 30,000 crore every day owing to COVID-19, according to a KPMG analysis report released in May 2020, there will be more people affected than we can imagine. The pandemic has not only reduced investment in construction projects, it has also hit thousands of ongoing infrastructure projects, leading to a loss of employment and a spiraling impact on the national economy. With concurrent reduction in demand and supply, the construction industry is expected to face severe uncertainty, dismal consumer sentiment and loss of income, adds the KPMG report. 
 

Before the national lockdown was announced towards the end of March 2020, India had about 20,000 ongoing projects out of which work was already underway at 18,000. These projects had involved a workforce of 8.5 million. However the subsequent lockdown led to reverse migration of labourers and, of course, a halt of construction activity.
 

But the industry experts are not yet ready to give up on the construction industry because the industry is expected to pull the country out of the economic mess created by Corona virus. Elias George, Partner and National Head, Infrastructure Government and Healthcare (IGH), KPMG India told a news portal recently, “The construction sector has been critically affected by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Once the projects resume post lockdown, it is important not just to navigate the recovery phase well, but also to ingrain resilience into all systems and processes, to confront similar disruptions better in future.” So the hope for the future is that the industry mends its ways and addresses its shortcomings, one of which is the amount of air pollution it causes in its current form. 
 

Cement, the strong adhesive agent, is an elementary part of construction industry as it plays a critical role in building foundations, roads, bridges, highways, etc. Its key role in urban development is rivaled by the fact that its manufacturing process is also a major cause of industrial air pollution. In fact, manufacturing clinker, the basic ingredient in cement, emits noxious gases like carbon dioxide. As per reports, production of each ton of cement also releases about a ton of CO2. Concrete is also the cause of about 8% of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. Despite that, cement is just indispensable to the construction industry. It is no wonder then that the industry players are keen for a viable alternative to it.
 

There is ample scope that a substance like the Green cement  can replace the traditional cement and reduce the risk of air pollution. Since it is majorly made with discarded industrial wastes like fly ash and blast furnace slag, green cement can actually address the problem right at its origin. The emission of CO2 is considerably reduced in the manufacturing process of green cement. In fact, some reports even claim that if the construction industry shifts to green cement significantly, the world can reduce its carbon footprint by 40%.
 

The green cement is the perfect alternative to traditional cement because of its key features – non-polluting, more sustainable and stronger. It has long-lasting advantages not just in the construction sector but also for the environment and the future. Most significantly, green cement is assembled through a 100% eco-friendly process, which leaves behind no debris, dust or fumes. Thus, from its manufacturing process to its final use, green cement is totally non-polluting and safe for the air that we eventually are going to breathe.