Traditional Low Cost Materials and Construction Techniques
Climatic Zones in India
Regions
Northern
Central
Himalayan
Rajasthan
Ladakh
Madhya Pradesh
North East
Coastal Region
Introduction
Factors Climate
Geography
Materials
Introduction CLIMATE
Scorching sun in the Gangetic plains. Tropical conditions of the south. Dry cold climates in Spiti and Leh. Perennially damp conditions in the northeast.
GEOGRAPHY
Hilly terrain of the Himalayas and Kashmir. Flats of the Deccan and the south. Damp ground of Assam and Bengal. Dry earth of Punjab.
Introduction MATERIALS
According to area:
North India ---- clayey soil makes sunburnt bricks and mud mortar. Northeast ---- bamboo construction South ---- red laterite stone ‘Mangalore’ tiles for roofs Middle India ---- plethora of sandstone (eg: pink city)
According
to caste:
Brahmins ---- white stone Kshatriyas ---- red stone Vaishyas ---- yellow stone Shudras ---- black stone
NORTHERN
Himachal Pradesh
Climate
Topography
PRIMARY CONSIDERATIONS :-
To protect the building from cold and winds in winter.
Penetration of maximum sunlight in living areas and generating warmth.
Rain water disposal.
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE: RAMMED EARTH
DHAJJI WALL
KATHKUNI
LOG HOUSE
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE: KATHKUNI OR KATHKUNDI STYLE :
A mesh of interlocking horizontal cedar (locally, deodar) sleepers is created - and in this dressed or raw stone is packed.
A singular characteristic is the absence of vertical members.
The most common type of Kathkuni wall is made by laying apart two square section wooden wall beams longitudinally parallel to each other to define the width of the wall.
These are lap-jointed or nailed by the cross joist.
The whole frame work done is known as cheol.
With inherent elasticity, the design has an enormous seismic response.
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE: KATHKUNI OR KATHKUNDI STYLE :-
KALPA
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE
BADRINATH TEMPLE, KAMRU FORT
SARAHAN TEMPLE
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE: DHAJJI WALL CONSTRUCTION Dhajji means quilt of patch work. Timber and stone. Presence of timber studs gives a sturdy framework and divides the brickwork into small sections. As a result the individual sections resist shaking and this prevents destruction of the wall Used for walls of upper stories, especially for the gable portion.
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE: Different patterns of dhajji wall
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE: RAMMED EARTH CONSTRTUCTION:
In this type earth is filled in-situ into vertical mounds in layers of one meter height.
Another common mud construction is consist of sun dried earthen bricks mixed with straw chippings to decrease shrinkage cracks.
Surface of these walls are leveled by mud plaster which gives it property of proneness to cracking and washing during rains.
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUE: LOG HOUSE
Walls ---- logs laid horizontally parallel to each other to define its width.
Over them, another course of logs, cut to a length equal to the width of the wall are laid cross wise to cover the entire length of the wall.
Another method --- the wooden logs --- squared and the space between each course filled with brick work and glazed tiles.
The positive points ---- solidity, gravitational stability and lateral rigidity.
Ladakh
Ladakh - Introduction It occupies western most extension of high n dry Tibetan plateau. It is sandwiched between Khardungla and Zaskar ranges.
The entire region is snowbound with severe winter and mild summer. Therefore the building construction material is roughly dressed stones, sun baked mud bricks and clay.
Ladakh - Monasteries Built on flat land. Entry to the main room after the portico is always through a small door. Elevationally these buildings are simple and follow the load bearing structural system. Often there bland facades are treated with marvelous surface decorations that include color application and carvings which would highlight and give prominence to their existence. Mud and stone ---- base walls, flooring and roofs.
Ladakh - Monasteries Load bearing wall were thicker of about 2 feet to 6 feet thick and at times tapering. Wood --- load bearing agent such as beams and columns. The roofs are flat --- made of mud that is supported over a mesh of willow twigs.
Ladakh - Monasteries PLANNING Ground floor --- storage for food and fodder, space for animals and a small room serving as a pit for collecting human waste. The upper floors have habitable rooms, a small courtyard in the middle with rooms on the other three sides. There is a large multipurpose room, a small prayer room and a segregated toilet block . Raised plinth by a foot or two which is made of random rubble masonry.
Ladakh - Monasteries
Ladakh - construction technique Load bearing structure with a stronger base and a lighter top. The internal walls again plastered with mud for better insulation. The roof are flat and have a small parapet in edge. buildings rests directly on the rock below.
The walls are 2-3 feet thick.
Ladakh - houses The common features are : Houses were built on two levels where ground level was used for storage and animal shelter and sometimes rooms for servants as the upper level have habitable spaces. In most of the houses there is only one single large room and an oven in the corner which is multipurpose in function.
Ladakh
NORTH-EASTERN STATES OF INDIA
INTRODUCTION
the north east comprises of the seven sisters states of Aruanachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura.
Characteristics Rich bio-diversity Heavy precipitation High seismicity
ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE
Monuments in this region belonging to the medieval period i.e., 6th century A.D. To 19th century A.D.
It maintained cultural relation with the main land. The present Bangladesh and the erstwhile west Pakistan was a part of India before the partition of the country and hence the influence on north eastern architecture from outside.
PLATFORM DWELLINGS
The pile platform houses can be seen among the hill tribes.
They were built on piles due to the uneven land, even though they do built on even land but never entirely without piles.
This kind of houses are seen to be built only by the people from the hills.
The houses are generally known as bor muthun, skull house or morang.
The centre line of posts projects through the ridge, a custom of some tribes only, and this posts were covered like the roof with toku palm leaf, or with another palm called jengo.
The post projects so as to enable them to be lowered as the part in the ground decays.
The roof comes so far down as to hide the walls of matted split bamboo, of which also the platform and the floor are made; these are supported by cross pieces borne on saplings, post, and bamboo uprights. Houses from 30 to 200 ft long and from 20 to 35 ft wide, are often built part on the ground and part raised, with the fire places built up of stones. A notched log serves as a ladder, to get on the platform or visitors end. In no case, are the platform posts in water, for all the changes or villages are perched on hill tops.
KARBI HOUSES
House location and orientation:
slopes or hilltops are not favored by the karbis for establishing a village, nor is the vicinity of streams. For that reason flat areas are always preferred.
The position of the house is not determined by any fixed spatial orientation, however one usually find dwellings oriented towards the village road or lane, and preferably facing towards the east direction.
When houses are to be build on hilly ground, they are oriented so that the front side faces the valley and the rear part faces the upslope of the mountain.
In communities settled on rivers banks houses usually stand facing the river.
THE DWELLING SPACE
Traditional karbi houses are made up entirely of
wood, bamboo and thatch.
The whole construction is raised several feet above the ground on a bamboo platform supported by wooden posts, under which domestic animals run freely.
The floor rests on a layer of support consisting of splintered and whole bamboo grids to ensure appropriate rigidity.
This platform is enclosed on four sides by a fence of bamboo lattice, leaving only one entry to which one accesses by a bamboo ladder.
Remarkable is the absence of nails, wires or metal clippings, as well as windows.
Bamboo splits as well as thongs extracted from the bark of trees are used to tie structural and non structural elements.
The eaves in the front and rear sides (more rarely the overhanging of the gable when the roof is set up perpendicularly) form two small porches.
Roofs are thatched by using an unidentified species of grass (karbi : phelang) reaching a height of 1.5 to 2 meters, available in the nearby forests.
The eaves do not extend much further down than fencing level.
It must be noted that karbi houses of important people bear no special external decorations that may advertise the status of their owner, as it is often the case in neighbouring societies.
KHASI SETTLEMENT :
Most of the houses are constructed in accordance with the people's tastes.
Each dwelling structure has a compound and in some cases cattle sheds are occupied by each household irrespective of the number of members and income
The old type of houses are oval shaped.
The foundation as well as the roof are oval shaped.
These buildings are usually raised on the plinths
THE HOUSE IS USUALLY DIVIDED INTO THREE ROOMS
PORCH
CENTRE ROOM
SLEEPING ROOM
The floor of the centre room and sleeping room are covered with planks. The floor of these rooms are much higher than that of the porch . The porch is used as the store room in which the inmates keep their agricultural tools and implements and firewood.
The centre room serves as the kitchen as well as the sitting room.
The centre room is furnished with short wooden stools and higher cane or bamboo stools (mula). The sleeping compartments are always provided with wooden bed steeds and boxes where clothes are kept.
Coastal regions India
Type of coastal Plain coastal area
Ground level-sea
Lake and sea joints
Lagoon coastal
Cliff coastal
Plain coastal
Boulders on the shore. Coconut trees on coastal edges. Domestic entrepreneur factories. Domestic fishing. House boats. Wood refining.
Lagoon coastal
Rocky land basins. Domestic fishing. Clear sea water. Rich in coral. Cultivation of shell fish.
Cliff coastal
High cliff. Large density of coconut. Plane basins. Clear water. High tides. Some sites filled with bamboo.
Ground level-sea
Rich pines on coastal area. Shell fish cultivation. Good for sea fishing.
Lake and Sea joints
Narrow sand basins between lake and sea. Low tides near edge of the basin. Lake water is non-usable due to osmosis of salt from sea. Salmon fish in high quantity. Good for house boats. High growth of African fungi leading to depletion of fish resources. Local fishing.
TYPICAL HINDU HOUSE
`c
`c
TYPICAL MUSLIM HOUSE
`c `c
