‘Chaandi Ghar’ house model may be incorporated in govt’s low-cost housing schemes

[Naveed Yaseen]

Karachi
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader and former Senator Taj Haider has said that he will suggest the government to incorporate Gul Bahao’s ‘Chandi Ghar’ in the government’s low cost housing scheme.

This he said in a meeting with Nargis Latif of Gul Bahao, an organisation working on waste management. Latif told the PPP leader that after spending 15 years on research in waste management, her organisation has come up with a number of innovations, which can turn the country around and are the answer to the Peoples Party’s manifesto of ‘Roti, Kapra, Makan’. She said so far Gul Bahao has spent more than 60 million on its research activities.

Among several of its innovations is a very cheap fuel called fuel pack which can be used in boilers which in turn can be used in thermal power plants to produce electricity. These fuel packs, she said are a good substitute for coal. The advantage the fuel pack has over other fuels is its easy availability in the city, since wood and cloth (constituents of the fuel) both inflammable materials are easily available here. The beauty of the fuel pack is the manner in which different inflammable but non-toxic waste is made into a block, which is portable and can be easily used in running boilers.

Latif gave a presentation of the Chandi Ghar (a prefabricated house made from plastic waste) and said that these houses can provide the poorest of the poor with a solid house, which can withstand all the elements while being extremely affordable. A ten by twelve feet room costing as little as ten thousand rupees. Latif said that a good number have been marketed through the earth quake affected areas.

Ex-senator said that he was much impressed by Gul Baho’s work and had been lobbying for it both inside and outside the party and in public forums.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=136711