In our culture, house is not just a materialistic structure, instead it is more of a emotional thing. One’s house is probably the most secure place in his/her life. But, if the housing is not done in a proper way, the protector can also cause harm. Housing has a direct linkage to public health and sustainable development of a society. Housing, done in a proper way can contribute greatly towards reducing climate change. Improper housing leads to increased vulnerability towards several diseases, increased energy uses, hence contributing to global warming and climate change. Choice of building material and proper ventilation are two basic factors that should be taken care of. Actually, in the current times, houses have become more of a type of pomp and show. Just about 50 years back, the roof floorings done in a large part of countryside was primarily done by using stones, bricks and other local commodities. These commodities were a part of local supply chain. But now, it is greatly replaced by RCC system of roofing. It is easily observable fact that the stone roofs heat up less in summers as compared to the RCC ones. The extra heating of RCC roofs leads to increased energy usage, leading to global warming. Further, the materials used in RCC are not a part of local supply chain. They are mostly transported from one part of country to the other. The transportation of these goods requires a lot of fuel and causes air pollution. Further, this also reduces the self-sustainability of the areas using these materials.
The biggest drawback of improper housing is that it is a major health threat to the people living in it. In the year 1988, WHO issued Guidelines for Healthy Housing. These guidelines were issued again in the year 2018, urging the governments to intervene for healthy housing. The guidelines based on globally collected case studies, highlighted major risk to health from housing due to factors such as crowding, indoor heat and cold, indoor air pollution etc. High indoor temperatures can lead to several heart-related diseases, whereas indoor air pollution can lead to severe respiratory diseases. Also, crowding can lead to rapid spread of infectious diseases.
Improper housing is leading to a rapid increase in cooling-energy demands such as Air Conditioners throughout the nation. The rate of increasing cooling energy demands is alarming. According to a report published in Economic Times, India’s cooling energy consumption to grow around 2.2 times by 2027. The same report also mentioned that interventions can help it cut down by 17% in the next decade. There is one more problem with this rise. It is a fact that a very very small portion of the Indian population can actually afford an air conditioner. Also, air conditioners definitely cool the houses, but they also cause further rise in temperatures of surroundings. So, in this case, this system is also becoming more of a rich-friendly type of system. Those who’ve money remains cool; the poor will suffer his own heat as well that of the rich too. It is rightly said that there is no social justice without environmental justice and vice-versa. In 2019, The Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MOEFCC) launched Indian Cooling Action Plan (ICAP). This plan aims at providing thermal comfort to households and to decrease the cooling energy demands by 2037-38. A thermally comfortable house will reduce the health expenses and electricity consumption by the expenses, and thus will directly contribute towards the strengthening of economy. Fortunately, we are among the first few countries to have done so.
The impacts of improper housing are far more than ordinary people can imagine. A lot of health problems that we think are a result of some other factor, actually happen due to the housing conditions. In the year 2002, American Journal of Public Health published an article. The article was titled ‘Housing and Health: Time Again for Public Health Action’. The article mentions,
“Each year in the United States, (1) 13.5 million nonfatal injuries occur in and around the home, (2) 2900 people die in house fires, (3) and 2 million people make emergency room visits for asthma. (4) One million young children in the United States have blood lead levels high enough to adversely affect their intelligence, behaviour, and development. (5) Two million Americans occupy homes with severe physical problems, and an additional 4.8 million live in homes with moderate problems.”
The article mentioned several other problems too. A large part of problems at the present are with the urban housing. The cities are getting congested day by day due to loads of people migrating from villages to cities in search of a better standard of living. The governments have failed to make the villages sustainable. Just a few basic amenities such as hospital, schools, electricity, etc. would’ve reduced these migrations to a great extent. The 2011 census reveals that 45.36 crore Indians, i.e., nearly 37% of our population are migrants with the number rising. In the year 2001, the migrant count stood at 31.5 crores. This implies that in between 2001 and 2011, nearly 15 crore people have become migrants. This increasing load on cities is leading to degrading in housing qualities and is also causing congestion.
In the year 2020, Centre for Science and Environment, a New Delhi based non-profit organisation, conducted a study on the mass housing constructions under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban to check whether these constructions are in compliance with Energy Conservation Building Code for Residential Building (ECBC-R) or not. The study was done across different climate zones of India and different building typologies. The study findings were disappointing. The orientation of blocks was incorrect, and the building material used was not suitable. This led to 158-464 hours of thermal discomfort to the occupants per year. A large fraction of these blocks either lacked proper ventilation or received excess of it. Lack of ventilation will cause transmission of communicable diseases as the indoor air will get stagnated. This will also compel the occupant to use electronic devices to facilitate ventilation, leading to unprecedented energy usage. In case of excess ventilation, it will lead to increased capital cost and will also will be a threat to human capital. Further, overcrowding is also a problem in these constructions.
The solution to this type of problem is logical and needs proper analysis of situation by the experts. As for my view, the government should make efforts to stop the migration. Villagers should be provided with basic facilities and employment in their village. This can be done by promoting cottage industries like handicrafts, pottery, etc. The farming sector should be strengthened. This will stop villagers to migrate to cities, and thus it will be reducing the load on cities and will reduce congestion. The people should be made aware of what building materials are suitable for which regional geography. And yes, the governments should first practice what they preach to others.