Four years after being
hit by the tsunami, survivors in Andaman are living a pitiable life in
shelters that are in conflict with nature, says a study conducted by a
group of architecture students from Jamia Milia Islamia. The shelters
built with corrugated tin sheets, cement and concrete are unsuitable to
the coastal climate and turn into furnaces during summer, the study
says.
Moreover, locally available material like bamboo and palm leaves have
been ignored to build short-term shelters that have become permanent
residences. "We had gone to study the vernacular architecture of the
Andamans as opposed to the rehabilitation shelters," said fourth year
student Saema Haidery.
"We were shocked to see that experienced architects had not taken into
consideration the climate or daily needs of people when building the
shelters," addedHaidery. The group visited a shelter in Brijganj, seven
kilometres from central Port Blair.
The shelter housed 160 families. "The tin shelters have bad ventilation.
Moreover, the projection of the roof is small and cannot protect
against extreme heat or rain of the coastal region," said student
Iqtedar Alam. "The tin shelters were probably preferred because they
were easy to put up on short notice," he said.
"But it has been four years and people are still living in those closed
boxes," Alam said.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/hindustantimes/20080423/r_t_ht_nl_general/tnl-tsunami-survivors-languish-in-
tin-bo-7244580_1.html
Copyright
© Yahoo Web Services India Pvt Ltd.
