How Bamboo lady of India is going mainstream with bamboo use in the construction industry
© Copyright mad4india.com
Nature has a solution to every human problem, whether it is a disease or natural disaster. In older times, people did not use concrete buildings made of cement, bricks, etc. Mud, stone, and wood were used to build houses.
Nowadays people consider wooden houses as dangerous and out of fashion. But houses built of mud, stone, and wood are more suitable for surviving natural disasters than today’s houses built of cement bricks. They are also eco-friendly.
For this reason architect Neelam Manjunath has been working hard to promote Bamboo houses among people. She wants to make Bamboo mainstream. Because of her constant efforts in this direction, people also know Neelam Manjunath as the Bamboo Lady of India.
Constant effort of years
Architect Neelam Manjunath has built large heritage sites, apartments, and even her office using bamboo, clay, and stone. She has also been advocating for including bamboo as a construction material in building houses for the last so many years. She has several reasons for the same, and the biggest of all is global warming.
The construction industry is one of the biggest contributors to the ever-increasing pollution and global warming. In such a situation, bamboo is the go-to material for us. Using bamboo would help in reducing pollution and global warming.
Bamboo trees generate 35 percent more oxygen than any other tree. The time span to grow bamboo is also less than compared to other trees used for the construction industry.
China is the biggest producer of bamboo, and India is the second-largest producer of Bamboo after China. In such a situation, India has an enormous opportunity to adopt bamboo as a construction material. This would be safer and eco-friendly as well.
Use of bamboo in construction
When Neelam Manjunath started her career, she too was unaware of bamboo use like other architects. In an interview, she told that she used bamboo for the first time in the year 1999.
According to Neelam, while she was working on the project at Raj Bhavan in Bangalore, her client asked her to use Bambo for the construction. During that project, she learned the usefulness of Bamboo.
Since then, Neelam has also been a part of the “National Mission for Bamboo Applications“. She is a vigorous advocate of bamboo use and she keeps promoting it amongst her customers and people all around.
Bamboo for employment generation
Using bamboo in the construction industry would increase its demand rapidly. Some people would definitely question the rapid cutting of bamboo trees, which could cause damage to the environment. But Neelam Manjunath has a solution for this.
According to her, bamboo trees grow fast and do not take 30 years to mature, unlike other trees. Farmers can also cultivate bamboo comfortably. Using bamboo will directly benefit farmers.
In the traditional construction industry, the big companies pocket the major share of the profit. But if we use bamboo in the construction industry, it will directly or indirectly benefit farmers. In such a situation, the use of bamboo in the construction industry will also increase employment opportunities for the farmers.
Bamboo house – An old tradition
Using bamboo in construction is an old tradition. Many countries like China, Japan also have houses made of bamboo. According to Neelam Manjunath, she wants to make this tradition mainstream so that the demand for bamboo use increases. This would be a significant step for the economy and our environment.
For more info about Neelam and her work, please go here.
- SHARE:
