The new Tamilnadu Secretariat -Assembly complex, a pet project of Chief Minister M Karunanidhi at Omadurar Government Estate on Anna Salai, has been designed depicting the State’s cultural traditions and what is unique is that the building has received the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold Certification from the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC).

Set for inauguration today, the foundation was laid in June 2008 by the Chief Minister himself. The civil works were undertaken by city-based ECCI company.

The building has been designed by German architect and infrastructure developer GMP International. It is a united venture of Meinhard von Gerkan and Volkwin Marg, who have planned and realised buildings in almost all major cities in Germany.

The duo is famous worldwide for their magnificent designs in countries like Russia and China. The design of the Assembly building takes account of the State’s cultural traditions as well as the urban context of the city of Chennai.

With its highly visible dome, the design echoes the structural features of Dravidian temples in south India. The geometry of the complex’s structure is derived from the traditional, round chakra or mandala motif, consisting of circles of various sizes inscribed in 36 isosceles triangles.

These basic shapes make up the geometrical structure of the entire design in both ground plan and elevation.

The internal plan features courtyard architecture with five round interior courts that are functionally differentiated, creating public, semi-public and also secure internal areas.

The spacious Citizens’ Forum on the south side of the building is created by the largest circle in the mandala. It is both the opening towards the city and the entrance area, with public functional areas.

The three other round courtyards in the interior of the building house the Assembly Hall, the Legislative Assembly Chamber and the Convention Hall.
The State Assembly rests on a battered plinth and is landscaped all round. The glass dome over the Assembly Hall marks the seat of the Tamilnadu Assembly.

The new Legislative Assembly building has received LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold Certification from the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC). LEED is an ecology-oriented internationally recognised building certification programme run in India jointly by the Indian and the US Green Building Councils.

According to the certificate, the building has become India’s largest governmental green building. The project is the single largest green initiative of a public facility of this scale and importance in the country.
The building would use less water, consume less energy, preserve natural resources, generate less waste and provide healthier space for occupants, as compared to a conventional building.

The complex was awarded the certification for adhering to guidelines of green buildings on site management, water efficiency and water use reduction, energy efficiency, enhanced indoor environmental quality and conservation of materials and resources.

The entire site has been well-planned with lot of open and landscaped space to promote bio-diversity and has made provisions to promote alternative transportation.

The exterior design has been planned to reduce heat ingress into the building by maintaining landscaped space to cool the exterior and by shading the walkways, roads and car parks.

A combination of a reflective roof and a green roof insulates the roof, filters stormwater and further reduces heat islands on the building exterior. Another key aspect is the building’s shape and exterior cladding. It is designed as a smooth arc which gleams obliquely against the linearity of the neighbourhood.

The exterior of the building has shaded windows, energy efficient glazing and a screen that incorporates traditional kolam designs.