Modern buildings are not well-suited to India's hot climate, according to an article from the World Economic Forum (WEF). At the same time, the perception of natural building materials is changing. Industry experts cite people’s interest in sustainability, growing concern about climate change and a desire to uphold traditional ways of living among the reasons for a renewed interest in vernacular architecture, writes the WEF.
The article explains that as the impacts of climate change are increasingly felt, more people are thinking about the climate-resilience of their homes. Vernacular homes are built to suit the climate, it writes: in the south, cob (balls of mud mixed with sand, straw or lime) is predominantly used, while in the north, to retain heat, stone and wood are used. “Inside my mud house, the temperature is 5 to 6 degrees Celisus cooler than outside,” S. Samyuktha, an architect at Earth Building, based between Coimbatore in south India and Ladakh in the trans-Himalayan region, told the WEF.
However, there are challenges when applying vernacular architecture in cities. Most vernacular buildings can only be a maximum of three storeys high, with 18-inch-thick walls. But given the space constraints in cities, wall thickness is reduced as the building is supported by concrete columns and beams, explains the WEF. Lime plastering is one option, it continues, as this technique lets the walls breathe. “It’s not always right to limit yourself to traditional techniques. In building for the future, we need to mix contemporary techniques with vernacular wisdom,” said Rahul Bhushan of North, a consultancy based Himachal Pradesh, in the article.
Vernacular buildings’ ability to withstand wider temperature variations offer "a genuine adaptation solution for India as climate impacts intensify", concludes the WEF. ce/em
