The Natural Way: Livemint

Good Earth Orchard, Bangalore: This enclave of 29 homes, built according to the principles of low-cost architecture made popular by British-born Indian architect Laurie Baker, has at least 250 species of medicinal and flowering plants. The development features an anaerobic sewage treatment facility to manage all refuse generated by the community, producing biogas to power various amenities.

T-Zed, Bangalore: This 100-apartment development draws no water from the state water board, treats all sewage within the campus and uses a network of 44 open wells to generate drinking water for the 68 families that now live in the enclave. A common restaurant, with a kitchen garden on its roof, evolved a trend for on-campus urban gardening that has given many residents their own private kitchen gardens.

The families live together. “We share a way of life, a common outlook on life,” he says, “For instance, there are no TVs here, no fans, no air conditioners.” The families also eat together. “We share a common kitchen, taking turns to prepare our food. In our kitchen you will find unpolished rice, ragi, sprouted cereals and food cooked with less oil. We enjoy what we eat, even though fried items, fast foods, noodles, etc. are hardly ever made.”

They even work together. “We generate our power using wind, solar and biodiesel sources. Water is drawn from an open well and a bore well. In the kitchen, we use gobar gas (biogas),” he says.
Trans Indus, a 10-year-old development near Tataguni village, approximately 20km from the city, comprises 42 acres of farmland where 18 families now live permanently (a total of 55 families own plots here). Farmhands from neighbouring villages are employed as gardeners, creating a pool of trained staff who also double up as domestic help. S. Nanda Kumar, president, Trans Indus Residents Association, says, “We encourage all residents to pick their domestic help from this pool. The locals feel connected to our enclave and this can minimize the aloofness of a gated community.”

In south Bangalore, Good Earth Orchard, an enclave built using principles of low-cost architecture, will be ready for occupation later this year.

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