The event was inaugurated on the morning of February 23 with the lighting of the traditional lamps of knowledge by dignitaries. In addition to ISHRAE President Sachin Maheshwari, National Steering Committee members and Host Committee members, there were celebrities who came from all over the world for the occasion: Timothy Wentz (ASHRAE President), Jeff Littleton (Vice President, ASHRAE), Didier Coulomb (Director General, IIF-IIR), Andy Ford (Past President, CIBSE), Frank Hovorka (Treasurer, REHVA), Jaap Hogeling (Editor-in-Chief, REHVA Journal), Prof. Okumiya (President, SHASE, Japan) and several others. Heads of many Indian associations also graced the occasion: Dr. Prem C. Jain (IGBC), Rajendra Mittal (AIACRA), Neeta Sharma (IAPMO), Paras Sirohia (RATA), Richie Mittal (IGSHPA), Sudhakaran Nair (IPA), Gurmeet Singh (RAMA), Pankaj Dharkar (FSAI) and many others. There was a good sprinkling of industry captains like Vir Advani (Blue Star), M. Gopi Krishna (Voltas), Arun Bhatia (UT) and
Rajesh Premchandran (Danfoss).