4 Indian cities in top 20 in APAC Sustainability Index 2021

BENGALURU: Knight Frank, global property consultant published Asia Pacific (APAC) Sustainably Led Cities Index in June, this year. The APAC Sustainability Index 2021, ranked 36 cities from the region based on urbanisation pressure, climate risk, carbon emissions, and government initiatives. Indian cities including Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai made it to top 20 in the index. Meanwhile, Singapore, Sydney, Wellington, Perth, and Melbourne, have emerged as top five green-rated cities in commercial real estate in the region.

Bengaluru, ranked 14^th, led the sustainability index amongst the top Indian cities in the APAC region. Bengaluru is the only Indian city in the index to achieve the ‘Gold’ standard category. Delhi ranked 17^th in the list, and was followed by Hyderabad at 18^th and Mumbai at 20^th.

Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank India, commented that new market dynamics have propelled the growth of sustainable development in India. He noted that the global commitment to carbon neutrality and net zero, which is firmly focused on creating environment friendly premises, has prompted Indian developers to augment their products to meet the requirements. As indicated in the Knight Frank’s Sustainability Index, four Indian markets feature in top 20 in the APAC region, which is a good indication of the real estate sector’s commitment to creating sustainable development, added Baijal.

Knight Frank’s report titled ‘Active Capital Asia-Pacific – Rising Capital in Uncertain Times’ established that issuances of green bonds in India have increased from $1.1 billion in 2020 to $6.8 billion in 2021, amounting to 523% increase. It noted that India is the sixth largest nation in the APAC region in terms of the total amount of green bonds issued in 2021.