COOL IDEA

Ahmedabad residents strategically use shade, ventilation and building materials to keep their homes comfortable: and it does not cost the earth

- DARSHAN DESAI

A learning and resource centre at Lilapur village in Ahmedabad with a modular roof, made from recycled coconut husk and paper waste, which can reduce indoor temperatures by 5-6°C.

IT IS early April, and mercury levels have already crossed 40°C in Ahmedabad, the industrial city of Gujarat. But Meena Soni's two-room house in Vishwas Nagar colony seems to emanate coolness, with the temperature at a comfortable 34°C or so. The reason, says Soni, is the unique modular cooling roof she installed a few years ago.

Made from recycled coconut husk and paper waste, the roof is removable, waterproof and a worthy upgrade to the earlier asbestos sheet that would turn the house into a furnace during summer. "Every year during this season, the health of my asthmatic husband used to worsen quite often, requiring him to seek urgent medical attention," she says. Now, her husband weathers the city's temperature spikes without visits to the hospital, and Soni does tailoring more consistently and comfortably. "We also save almost ₹400 a month on electricity bills," she says.

The roof, available under brand name ModRoof, costs almost ₹27,000 for an average roof of 9 sq m in a low-income settlement and is durable for 25 years. Like Soni, more than 200 low-income households from across the city have installed ModRoof in recent years with the help of a loan from Ahmedabad-based non-profit, Mahila Housing Trust (MHT), which has been promoting low-cost cool roof solutions since 2012.