Would you like to live in a mud house?
Part 2 of the post on the work done by sustainable architecture organization Hunnarshala and the lessons they've learnt from local communities of India. (Reading time: 7 minutes)
Every Thursday, we share a news story (or two) about India and its relationship with sustainability. Last Thursday, we shared four stories about sustainable architecture through the work of Hunnarshala founder Sandeep Virmani ji. You can read that post here. This week, I am following up on my promise to share four more stories of his experiences with local communities that have been living sustainably for years. Hope you feel inspired :)
#5 Can houses be built free of cost?
As an urban city dweller, one of my biggest expenditures (if not the biggest) in my lifetime would be building a house of my own. A lot of my peers have already taken debts (a.k.a home loans) to build that dream house for their growing families. Debts that take years to repay and ensure that we all keep working non-stop for fat pay checks that can repay those EMIs.
So the idea of building a house for free was unbelievable at first but at one time, was the norm. Sandeep ji in his session shared that there is a tribe called the Garasia Bhils who use 6 inches of soil to make bricks. They use those bricks to make their homes — for free. They also have a rule within their community to not cut any trees in the forests. They can only harvest trees that the seeds of which they have sowed on their own. The wisdom that lies in there…
Depending on the number of mud houses you’ve come across in your lifetime, you may find the idea of living in one either impractical and archaic or fascinating and a dream to pursue. I have some inspiring stories of different people building their homes with mud in this week’s Recommendation Corner at the end of this newsletter. Don’t forget to check them out!
#6 What was your favourite shape growing up?
In 2001, Gujarat experienced one of its worst earthquakes that claimed 20-25,000 lives and damaged over 1 million houses.
Hunnarshala was one of the first organizations to help rebuild Gujarat post this earthquake. When Sandeep ji went to assess the situation in the state, he came to know that the houses in the Banni grasslands of Kutch hadn’t gotten damaged by this earthquake. He wanted to understand why and came to know that the Meghwal community of Kutch had built these houses and during the 1819 earthquake they had learnt that a circular hut, also called the bhunga is more resilient to an earthquake than a square or rectangular one. He explained why -
When a square building moves during an earthquake, the corners become weak. In a circular home, there are no corners to break and the earth’s energy which comes up from the ground circulates in the bhunga and goes back into the earth. This local community had learnt to work with natural forces, not build structures to stop it or block it. They were aware of the limitations of man that humans can never build a structure that can be stronger than the forces of nature.
Sandeep ji took the help of Meghwal women to reconstruct bhungas after the earthquake in other places where houses were required. What I found mind blowing was that as these women weren’t literate and therefore didn’t know how to write with a pen or pencil, they maintained the records of this project through embroidery. They basically wrote/drew with a needle and thread on cloth.
Hunnarshala has also built a resort in a Kutchi village near the Indian-Pakistan border to celebrate Bhungas. It’s called Sham-e-Sarhad and is managed by the local pastoralist community there.
#7 Architecture lessons from Kashmir
There was also an earthquake in Kashmir in 2005 with a Richter scale (7.6) reading very similar to the one (7.7) in Gujarat above.
Hunnarshala was called to build temporary structures in which the local Kashmiris could survive the winter before something long term could be thought of. While doing research on the types of houses and indigenous architectural knowledge that already existed in the region, Sandeep ji learnt there were three types of houses the people there traditionally made to protect them from breaking during earthquakes.
One is a type of wooden house where they don’t use nails to join two pieces of wood together but use a weak joinery technique such that when the earthquake comes, the wood pieces slide or rub against each other but not ram into each other and break. Such a house shakes during the earthquake but the walls do not break down.
The second type of house is made from wood and stone and they discovered that it was built using base isolation. In this technique, the energy of the earthquake doesn’t enter the building as the house is not connected to the earth. There is hay between the earth and the house. These are the only buildings that were standing after the earthquake.
For the third one, I encourage you to get in touch with Sandeep ji or Hunnarshala to get your answer ;)
#8 Embracing the forces of nature
This last story baffles me! It’s about the humility of the human species accepting the force of nature instead of building against it.
In Bihar, there is a community called the Dabias that makes bamboo houses. They are expert bamboo artisans who make the entire house with just one knife and no other tools. They have multiple knotting techniques to tie these bamboos together. Almost every house in that community grows bamboo which is also treated (so that insects don’t attack it for the glucose inside) before it’s used for building the house.
Now in this house, they always build an attic on top and center. This attic is built on bamboo structures. Why? Because when it floods, the people living in the house break the four walls to let the water flow into the house, through the bamboo structure in the middle and out. When this is happening, they stay in the attic on top for 5-7 days. They even keep sattu (roasted Bengal gram powder) in the attic to eat during those days.
Now, Hunnarshala had been called by the Bihar government (under the Nitish Kumar government) to build houses with a budget of Rs 55,000 per house. The team gave the people the option to choose if they wanted to build cement houses or bamboo houses along with the cost of both the options. Sandeep ji shared that only 1% of the people asked for cement houses while 70% asked for bamboo houses and the rest wanted a mix of bamboo and brick. The cost of the bamboo houses met the budget of the project while the others were over by a bit. All three kinds were built under this scheme. I am curious to know which house you would have chosen!
That’s all for this week! Thanks for reading this week’s edition of Break the Bubble. See you next week!
Recommendation Corner
In case you’re not feeling inspired enough, here are a few more stories of people building houses with natural materials across India -
Father-Son Duo Build Dreamy Sustainable Home Using Mud, Straw & Cow Dung - The Better India
This woman will convince you to live in a mud house - The Better India
Made-of-Mud Bengaluru Home Harvests Rainwater, Solar Energy & Organic Food - The Better India
How this couple built their dream mud house in Bengaluru - Deccan Herald
The magic of mud houses - DW
Siblings abandon modern construction methods to build hand-sculpted mud house in mountains: 'If birds and ants can make their homes, why can't we?’ - Yahoo
This homestay in Rishikesh was crafted from mud by 90 individuals from 18 countries - The Architectural Digest
Now, mud houses are a not a silver bullet that can be applied to make houses everywhere more sustainable. They have their pros and cons, like any other material we will ever use in construction. But I do want us to expand our vocabulary and ask our architects if mud could be an option when you plan to build a house.
Might I add, there are are several banks in India which give loans to build “greener” homes. These are Union Bank of India, Axis Bank, State Bank of India, HDFC and the Bank of Baroda. However, by “green”, they don’t mean mud houses. They mean certified buildings and the interest rate benefit may not be that high. For instance, Axis Bank only gives a 0.25% reduced interest rate for these kind of loans. In some cases, they provide extended repayment options. But maybe it’s a start we should be happy about?