Monday, October 10, 2005
Some Seismic Sense Sought
The earth quivers and hell descends on earth. We may blame the forces of nature for the devastation. But it is human nature, as I mentioned in my last post, which is really responsible.
My neighbours across the lane are adding two stories to their home. The construction began hardly 10-12 days ago and it's more than half complete. I was surprised to discover that there were no pillars, only brick upon brick and no supporting columns. My colleagues tell me that many houses in Delhi are constructed this way; it saves time and more importantly money. What about safety? Eternal optimists, I presume.
The British having learnt their lesson from the 1897 Shillong earthquake took extra caution in constructing buildings in the seismic active far eastern India. The Assam-type houses, a common feature in both the hills and the plains of the region are not only easy on the bank balances but quake proof of a very high order. But then the common man discovered RCC. Common sense gave way to rigidity; the sense of aesthetics also got a little wayward. No new Assam-types are being constructed and the existing progressively demolished. Land prices have become directly proportional to the altitude of the buildings.
When the earth trembles, I don't worry about my parents, I know that they'll be safe in an Assam-type cottage on the hills. About me, I don't feel very secure within the confines of modern architecture.
7 comments:
Rave, rant... whatever (except spam and abuse, which'll be promptly deleted).
Alternatively, you can email me at c...@g...l.com or send a text message to +91 9911155171 (Text only number).
Glad to know you are safe. That's an Assam-type house? It looks so Germanic! In fact with the roof, it looks like a cross between a Javanese style family home and a German manor.
ReplyDeleteSurprisingly, I have very little memory of what the houses in Assam looked like, except a lot of them were on stilts.
thanks for dropping by... Was going through your profile. What does pseudo journalist mean? you with HT?
ReplyDelete'Pseudo' because I make deceitful pretences and 'Journalist' because the contract which I signed with my employer says so.
ReplyDeleteAnd if by HT you mean the newspaper 'Hindustan Times', hmm... perhaps no.
nice blog, i enjoy reading ur posts....linked u!
ReplyDeleteI´m glad that you are well.
ReplyDeleteToo bad with the building of houses not meeting safety requirements. Very unwise.
You have an outstanding good and well structured site. I enjoyed browsing through it » »
ReplyDeleteVery nice site! »
ReplyDelete