SARHAD RURAL SUPPORT PROGRAMME (SRSP)
PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND WATER & ENVIRONMENTAL SANITATION (PI&WES)

REPORTED BY AFSAR ALI KHAN PM PI&WES
Construction of Earthquake Resistant Shelter
Room of Size 12' x 14' x 9'

Preamble:

The earthquake of 10/8 in NWFP and AJK brought a very huge devastation to buildings, both public and private. The buildings included those used for schools, residences, hospitals, offices, clinics, hotels and restaurants, shops, ware houses, mosques etc.

Almost all buildings lacked the factor of resilience to earthquake, resulting into a large number of human casualties besides loss of livestock, property and bringing to null the already inadequate facilities of health, education, water and sanitation , communication etc.

The area face severe chill during winter, November to March , with heavy precipitation including hailstorms and snow. Mild summer prevails during May to September. During July to September, Monsoon causes heavy downpour.

There are seasonal and perennial springs of water in the mountains which provide drinking water to human beings and livestock.

The sites at Andrasi and Gran Thali villages comprises of clayey soil deposits with vegetation, over metamorphic rocks of conglomerates, shale and hard stratum of boulders and clay. The depth of clayey soil strata varies from one to two feet. The springs of water are almost 400 feet away from the built up area.

Finalization of Design and Implementation - The Process:

•  SRSP Engineers worked on several types of designs. To make the design socially acceptable to the inhabitants, two meetings were conducted with two separate community organizations of the affected villages.

•  The designs were shared with members of community organizations (COs) of the affected villages of Andrasi and Gran Thali

•  The CO members suggested certain modifications in the design

•  After accommodating the proposed modifications, the COs finalized the design.

•  On the second day, the COs members held their separate meetings again and identified the twenty houses which were to undertake the proposed construction of one room per house under the shelter programme through SRSP

•  The criteria of selection of such families has been developed by the COs members. The main points of the criteria has been that 1) widows would be given this shelter on priority basis. 2) Cutting of trees would not be tolerated. 3) Those members who did not possess the appropriate size of timber or are very poor would be helped by the other members in arranging timber and construction

•  Terms of Partnership (T.O.P) were decided in the general body meetings of the COs at Andrasi and Gan Thali

•  SRSP engineers explained to them the stages of execution

•  The CO members initiated the work by clearing the debris and extracted the timber from it

•  Layout of plan of each room was laid, marking each column and other detail

•  Pouring of concrete !:3:6 in the foundation of columns was done, along with erection of columns followed by fixing of bracing of columns through wooden planks at plinth, sill, lintel levels. To protect the room, plain GI sheets have been fixed on the exterior face of walls, followed by fixing of Lasani sheets on the interior face and packing of rice or wheat straw / dry grass in the walls. The fire place has been prepared and a fuel efficient stove placed in such away that its chimney after going up from the stove to a height of seven feet inside the room along the wall. The wall just adjacent the chimney has been protected from the effect of fire by fixing GI sheet and wall packing of mud and sand up to the height of six inches above the chimney. The roof frame has been fixed above the columns, followed by packing of straw / dry grass, corrugated GI sheets fixed on the roof top. The ceiling has been finished from the interior face by fixing hard board . One door of size 3.5 feet and two windows, each of size 2' x 3' have been provided in the walls. The floor has been properly compacted and finished with mud plaster, similarly the plinth protection has been provided 2 - 3 feet wide by compacting the natural ground and applied mud plaster.

•  SRSP engineers have been visiting the construction sites from time to time and provided technical support.

Main Design Features:

Stability - This has been evaluated for sub structure as well as the super structure, keeping in view the resilience to a high magnitude earthquake. The wooden columns are embedded in concrete up to a depth of two feet from natural ground level, six inches nail crosses has been fixed to each column at the base and then embedded in concrete so as to hold fast the column in place. The wooden beams have been diagonally connected to wooden columns and not just placed loose, the same have been also connected with the columns from the top. The wooden beams support the roof and transmit the load to columns which in alternate transmit it to the ground. The columns at each corner and in the centre of each side have been braced at plinth, sill, lintel levels through wooden planks in such a way that the structure becomes a single frame. Above all, all construction material are light weight, posing no threat of damage to life and property in case of jolts.

Economy- The proposed design is economical as compared to masonry type.

Workability - The proposed design is workable even a lay man can easily lay the site plan and erect the structure,

Utilization of Material - The design include utilization of the locally available construction material, like old timber columns and beams, rice/ wheat straw or dry grass, mud plaster for stabilization of floor and plinth protection, corrugated galvanized iron sheets, plain galvanized iron sheets, lasani board, hard board.

Insulation - To preserve the room temperature against high chill, eight inches thick filling of rice / wheat straw / dry grass has been provided beneath the corrugated GI sheet in the roof and six inches thick layer of straw in the walls would be packed in between the plain GI sheet and the lasani board. It is worth to mention here that rice straw and dry grass are being used by villagers in their houses and mosques for keeping the premises warm during winter since ancient times.

Fire Place - This provision has been provided in the room so that the inhabitants may utilize some sort of traditional way of heating and cooking in the room. Also fuel efficient stove has been introduced in each room.

Ventilation - Two windows, each having a size of 2' x 3' and one door of 3.5' x 7'have been provided to allow adequate sunlight and enable cross ventilation

Recycling and Shifting - As all the material used in this design are light weight, the room could be easily dismantled, shifted from one site to an other and re assembled.

Electrification - The room is having provision of internal electrification so as to use tube light, bulb and one ceiling fan

Orientation - It has been suggested that the room should face the south direction so as to utilize the available sunlight up to optimum level.

Clearing of roof from Snow - The roof is having a slope of 8.3 % , so as to enable clearance of snow.