Green auditing is the process of identifying and determining whether institutions practices are eco-friendly and sustainable. The main objective to carry out a green audit is to check green practices followed by the university and to conduct a well-formulated audit report to understand where we stand on a scale of environmental soundness.

 

Modernization and industrialization are the two important outputs of the twentieth century that have made human life more luxurious and comfortable. Simultaneously, they are responsible for voracious use of natural resources, exploitation of forests and wildlife, producing massive solid waste, polluting the scarce and sacred water resources, and finally making our mother Earth ugly and inhospitable. Today, people are getting more familiar with global issues like global warming, greenhouse effect, ozone depletion, climate change, etc. Now, it is considered as a final call by mother Earth to walk on the path of sustainable development. The time has come to wake up, unite and combat together for a sustainable environment.

 

Considering the present environmental problems of pollution and excessive use of natural resources, Honorable Prime Minister, Shri. Narendra Modiji has declared the Mission of Swachch Bharat Abhiyan. Also, University Grants Commission has mentioned the “Green Campus, Clean Campus‟ mission mandatory for all higher educational institutes. As environmental sustainability is becoming an increasingly important issue for the nation, the role of higher educational institutions in relation to environmental sustainability is more prevalent.

 

Green Audit is the most efficient ecological tool to solve such environmental problems. It is a process of regular identification, quantification, documenting, reporting and monitoring of environmentally important components in a specified area. Through this process, the regular environmental activities are monitored within and outside of the concerned sites which have direct and indirect impacts on the surroundings. A green audit can be one of the initiatives for such institutes to account for their energy, water resource use as well as wastewater, solid waste, hazardous waste generation. The green Audit process can play an important role in the promotion of environmental awareness and sensitization about resource use. It can create consciousness towards ecological Page 5 values and ethics. Through the green audit, one can get direction about how to improve the condition of the environment.