(From the pages of The Hindu dated February 11, 1949)
Improvement Trust’s Experiment
A low cost building has been constructed by the Madras City Improvement Trust as an experimental measure. The cost of the house is stated to be approximately Rs.3,000. The building was inspected this morning by Dr. S. Gurubatham, Minister in-charge of housing.
Low-cost houses have attracted considerable interest during recent months and a number of types have been demonstrated to the public. Among these might be mentioned the Khadi and Swadeshi Exhibition Committee’s Model House, the Public Works Department’s soil-cement house and the Modern Housing Construction Company’s “Utility House”.
The City Improvement Trust had been working on plans for the construction of a building which, while combining the advantages of the various types, would compare favourably in cost with the cheapest of them and would, at the same time, be durable and convenient.
The experimental building constructed by the Trust provides a bed room (10x8), a living room (10x12), a kitchen (8x6.4), a bathroom (6x4), a verandah (10x5), a passage and a water closet. It stands on a site of three quarters of a ground. The carpet area of the building is 370.55 sq. ft and the plinth area is 475 sq. ft.
A special feature of the building is that its walls are built of hollow blocks It is stated that the cost of 100 sq. ft of wall of hollow blocks works out at Rs. 70 as compared with Rs. 117 for a brick work wall of the same area. About 1,000 blocks are used in the building. It is claimed that the hollow blocks are not only more durable than brick work but that they have a better insulating effect than the latter owing to the intervening air spaces.
The roofing of the building has been done with pre-cast reinforced concrete T beams and slabs. This type of roofing is stated to combine the advantages of other usual types and also to result in saving both labour and materials. A weathering course has been laid on the roof for cooling and waterproofing effects. Doors and windows in the building are of Burma teak and country wood. Frames have been completely eliminated and a saving of 40 per cent in timber is stated to be achieved by this means.
The completed building presents quite an attractive appearance and would be suited to the requirements of a small lower-middle class family.
The construction of the building took six weeks as the hollow bricks were made by hand.
The City Improvement Trust has called for tenders for a block-making machine capable of producing 2,000 blocks a day. When this machine is available, two houses could spring up every 24 hours.
