As the Solar Decathlon India (SDI) 2024-25 Challenge drew to a close, it became evident that the initiative has evolved far beyond a student competition—it is now a thriving movement driving climate action in India’s built environment.
Backed by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and led by the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) and the Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy (AEEE), under the Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF), SDI empowers the next generation of climate leaders. Each year, undergraduate and postgraduate students from Indian academic institutions design net-zero energy-water and climate-resilient solutions for real-world building challenges.
This year’s SDI Finals took place from May 23–25, 2025, at the picturesque Infosys campus in Mysuru, bringing together over 2,100 students from 150+ institutions. Teams proposed solutions to 34 real-world building projects and developed seven innovative products targeting sustainability in India’s building sector.
Division-wise Winners of the 2024–25 Challenge
Multi-Family Housing
- Winner: Team Astitva – BMS College of Architecture, Design and Planning & B.M.S. College of Engineering
- Runner-up: Team Paargami – School of Planning and Architecture, Vijayawada; IIT Tirupati; Adani University
Educational Building
- Winner: Team Nirmaan – Manipal School of Architecture & Planning & Manipal Institute of Technology
- Runner-up: Team Samavet – SMEF’s Brick School of Architecture & BRACT’s Vishwakarma Institute of Information Technology
Office Building
- Winner: Team MAA-EARTH – MEASI Academy of Architecture, MEASI Institute of Management & B.S. Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute
- Runner-up: Team Samarpan – Manipal School of Architecture & Planning & Manipal Institute of Technology
Community Resilience Shelter
- Winner: Team Centauri – Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur
- Runner-up: Team Bhumika – College of Engineering Trivandrum
Construction Worker Housing
- Winner: Team Anvaya – BMS College of Architecture, Design and Planning & B.M.S. College of Engineering
- Runner-up: Team SRJAN – BMS School of Architecture & BMS Institute of Technology & Management
Residential Cooling Retrofit
- Winner: Team Kalpana – Manipal School of Architecture & Planning & Manipal Institute of Technology
- Runner-up: Team Gaia – Atria University
Event Highlights
The event opened on May 23 with student presentations to the jury, followed by the Climate Smart Innovation Exhibition, which showcased industry-driven climate mitigation and adaptation solutions. Innovators demonstrated technologies pushing the boundaries of sustainable construction.
Lambert Technovation Pvt. Ltd. won the Climate Smart Innovation Award 2025 for their chemical-free, modular wastewater treatment reactor, promising cleaner, more sustainable buildings.
On May 24, the winning teams from six divisions pitched their projects to a Grand Jury comprising investors, developers, and media veterans. Team Anvaya, with their modular and cost-effective housing solution for construction workers, was awarded the Grand Prize. Their real-world collaboration with Rohan Builders (India) Pvt. Ltd. demonstrated the project’s feasibility and potential for scale.
The jury praised their work as “a versatile and investment-worthy design that answers the urgent housing needs of construction workers while pushing net-zero targets.”
For Team Anvaya, the competition was a transformative experience. Initially daunted, they soon recognized SDI as a unique opportunity to apply academic knowledge to real-world problems, far beyond the conventional curriculum.
Career Opportunities and Keynote Inspiration
On May 25, SDI hosted a Career Fair, linking top-performing students with organisations driving climate-positive change in India. In a stirring keynote address, Ashish Goel, Founder of OctoLife, encouraged students to act decisively:
“Start anyway – imperfect, urgent, now.”
The carbon-negative trophies awarded to winning teams were themselves symbols of the sustainable innovation SDI champions—proof that climate mitigation can be beautiful, tangible, and inspirational.
Voices from the Event
“It’s a great atmosphere… working on real-life problems and design challenges. We get to see some cool innovations and new technologies from startups, which we can also pilot.”
— Guruprakash Sastry, AVP & Head – Climate Action, Infosys
“It’s mind-blowing to see that India is the hub for innovation in the built environment… brick-and-mortar innovation apart from technology. That gives hope we can reach our climate goals.”
— Sunita Purushottam, Head of Sustainability and CSR, Mahindra Lifespace Developers Ltd. & Chair, GBPN Board
“Watching Solar Decathlon India grow into a full-blown movement… seeds the DNA of a sustainable built environment in the very generation that will shape our homes and cities.”
— Manisha Natarajan, Independent Media and Content Strategist
The grand jury team:
Aiyappa Somayanda – Chief Business Officer, Brigade REAP, Guruprakash Sastry – AVP and Head – Climate Action, Infosys, Hari Prasad Hegde – Founding Partner, Edhina Capital, Harleen Oberoi – Sr. VP & Head – Project Management, Tata Realty & Infrastructure Ltd. & Tata Housing Development Company Ltd., Johann Fernandes – Co-Founder, climateXcapital, Priyank Garg – Managing Partner, IAN Alpha fund, and Sunita Purushottam – Head of Sustainability and CSR, Mahindra Lifespace Developers Ltd. & Chair, GBPN Board.
