NEW DELHI, NOV 8: With cyclonic storms an annual feature along the Orissa coast, the Centre will use disaster-resistant housing technology in rebuilding the hundreds of thousands of houses that need to be constructed in the cyclone-ravaged state.Newer building techniques which help dwellings withstand battering by cyclonic storms would be made easily available to the people of Orissa as they go about rebuilding their homes, Union Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation Minister Satyanarayan Jatia, who also looks after housing, told The Indian Express.Lakhs of houses have been flattened by the severe cyclone that hit Orissa on October 30. Roofs flew off and walls collapsed after being hit by gale-force winds for over 36 hours.Developed by the National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC), the technology involves using pyramidal roofs so that the thrust area is reduced, with tiles to give the roof the required shape.Additionally, the roof, walls and the foundation would have appropriate spacing to allow for flexibility when the building is buffeted by strong winds in a typhoon or cyclonic conditions, Jatia said.Such techniques are commonly used in quake-prone areas in Japan and along the Californian coastline in the United States.In India, the NBCC has been working on such disaster-resistant building techniques for a long time, revving up their efforts especially after the experiences of the Latur and Uttarkashi earthquakes.However, these efforts have largely remained confined to small experimental projects, nothing on the scale of housing that lies ahead in Orissa.
