Sargodhians, alumni of PAF Public School, with the collaboration of National Productivity Organisation (NPO) and Engineering Development Board (EDB) has introduced an idea of using bamboo for house construction because of low cost, indigenous raw material and earthquake resistance.
Briefing the salient features of bamboo houses here on Saturday, Kaiser H Naseem, member of Sargodhians said that bamboo could be grown locally and quickly. It is lightweight and quick to build. It could be insulated. Most of all, it is cheap, he added.
"A home can be built from Rs 50,000 to Rs 150,000 depending on the size and insulation material used," Naseem said.
Bamboo is a strong, flexible and widely used internationally in earthquake prone areas, he said, adding that it could be made insulated and plastered with mud to avoid combustibility.
Initially, they wanted to create awareness of this model but now we wanted some other agencies like NGOs and bilateral institutions to move forward with the concept, he said.
Sargodhians, a non profit organisation, sought technical assistance, collaboration and funding to replicate at least 100 bamboo-built houses in the quake-hit areas from relief agencies, Naseem said.
The residents of cluster village would also be given skills training of organic products in poultry and agriculture, Saquib said.