Green Frenzy Catching On

Our mother earth was once fully dressed in green. When man appeared on the scene, he began to denude the earth of its green cover. The earth cannot bear to be bared. Man is beginning to see that ruthless felling or trees and cutting of shrubs, plants and creepers indiscriminately will spell his disaster. He is half-heartedly trying to rectify the situation by planting trees and adopting other measures.

Indians are nature-lovers. ‘Going green with envy’ is an English saying. In India all Hindu homes go green on festival days. They are decorated with green mango leaves. Green is the symbol of plenty.

Our epic poet Kuvempu goes into raptures when he sees green trees, creepers, plants and bushes. The hills and valleys are painted green. Green here, green there, green everywhere. The body becomes green. The mind also goes green, he exclaims. One of the colours on our national flag is green.

Green house effect

Though at the national or international level not much is being done to restore the earth’s greenness, some sane individuals are taking it seriously and trying to prevent the green house effect. A campaign is launched in urban centres to see that the flagrant violation of nature’s domain is prevented.

Going green does not mean only planting trees. Even the homes should go green. Bangaloreans are perhaps pioneers in this regard. The people of other cities go ‘green with envy’ when they see that Bangalore is blessed with a salubrious climate. The well-meaning citizens of Bangalore have realised how precious their climate is. It is not only pleasant. It is life-giving.

Those who want to own homes in Bangalore now aspire to have one which is eco-friendly. They are going after suitable designs of houses which conform to this norm. One advantage of Bangalore is that its weather helps builders who construct green homes. Weather is an additional favourable factor.

One of the largest developers of green homes, Chandrashekhar Hariharan, CEO of Bio-diversity Conservation of India Limited (BCIL), feels that there is a surge in the demand for green homes. The new way is becoming popular. But it has not yet become a path-breaking revolution. Some well-to-do people desire to have green homes as it is considered to be fashionable. They want to have a home which is unique, on seeing which the neighbours would go green with envy. The people at large are slow to realise its importance. Those who come forward to build green homes set an example to others to emulate.

Eco-friendly homes

Green movement is not new. The term eco-friendly need not be explained to anyone. Solar panels, biogas, electric cars and such others are familiar. But the concept of construction of eco-friendly homes is new. Builders and developers interested in green homes claim to have constructed a number of homes and apartment houses. The numbers they given are only estimates. It is not yet possible to assess the extent of the spread of the movement.

One of the builders says that when the idea of green homes was mooted in 1995 people laughed at it, saying that it is utopian. But today, the CEO of BCIL says, his organisation has completed six projects in the last ten years. Construction work is in progress in the case of four.

The first project of this organisation called ‘Trans Indus’, consists of 70 homes built over an area of 47 acres of land. BCIL is rendering consultation services to those who are in need.

The enthusiasts of green homes want to remove the wrong conception about the green home. They think that going green is very costly and say that they cannot afford it. The builders are trying to dispel this belief. The advocates of green homes maintain that the cost of building a green home is the same as that of an ordinary home. As in other industry here also the scale of construction plays a decisive part in the cost.

The Government is said to have framed certain norms to be followed in the construction projects. The Ministry of Environment and Forests has given a mandate to all the builders that builders with project above 20000 sqm., will have to get environmental clearance from the Ministry. They must install rain water harvesting systems and sewage treatment plants, as well as solar panels.

Anyone who opts for green home should remember that one wanting to go green should change his life style. Habits must be changed. Solar cooker must be used. Water treatment plant has to be installed. Urinals must be waterless. Green home makes the person go green in every aspect of his life. Green here, green there, green in front and green behind, green everywhere. These words of Kuvempu can be realised.

Hand-book

The hand-book on green homes says that for washing machines the soap that should be used is prescribed. It pays attention to every part of the home to be and one has to observe the rules. Eco-friendly materials must be used in construction. The life styles of the people who live in the homes are also important.

A green home is one that is built by using local materials. Rain water harvesting system is essential. Flush tanks must be of low capacity. Unleaded paints must be used sparingly. Handcraft is preferable to machine. Green indexed electronic goods are preferable to others. The plot on which the home is being built must have bio-diversity environment.

—HSK