Indigenous Patterns 16

 

     No                    Title Location    Description
  Spatial Organization and pattern 

Clustered housing

 

 

 

Damdama All houses are clustered together and in close proximity to each other. A single family unit consists of a kitchen, store and two bedrooms. This typical layout was found in all houses. The kitchen doubles as the living space and a bedroom. 
Public vs   Private movement   Damdama There are two defined paths of movement in the village that leads you to all terraces, out of which one is used by the residents and the other, which is a longer indirect route, has been allocated for guests and visitors. This shows sensitivity towards gradation of public and private space which was lacking in Khanian. 
Summer/Winter Migration   Damdama Before the earthquake in 2005, the villagers migrated within the village to other houses that were warmer and clustered together. Their summer houses were destroyed during the earthquake. The residents now occupy the winter houses during summers and migrate to Mansehra or Balakot during the harsh winters. 
Communal Toilets  Damdama No attached toilets are made with any house. The community shares toilets which are spread out and made apart from the houses/living spaces. This is unlike Khanian, where each house had an attached toilet. 
Zoning (Stacking Principle) Damdama The animals live on the lower floors whereas, their owners live on the floor above. There is segregation between the animal and human living space. However, every house has an attached store at the back that also serves as a space for the animal if it requires protection from harsh climatic conditions. 
Communal Terraces Damdama All houses share walls and hence the constructions are compact and collective. Rather than individual housing, Damdama shows the concept of communal living similar to what we see in contemporary apartment living. All public terraces are shared by the community. Whereas few have private balconies. 
Wooden water drainage pipes  Damdama The rainwater drainage pipes are made out of wood. These are made by the community themselves and installed wherever and whenever necessary.

 

Railings used for Wedding Greetings  Damdama  The community paints a greeting ‘Shaadi Mubarak’ outside the house of the newly wedded. This is their way of congratulating and marking the house that has a wedding. This makes it identifiable from a distance and makes it special.

 

Skylights/Chimneys as seating   Damdama The shared public terraces have chimneys and skylights at multiple levels that double as places of rest and sitting outside their houses.

 

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Farming on Contours  Khannian In Khannian, they do not have a large piece of lands for farming. Instead, they have small patches for cultivation on the contours. 
Construction under Boulders  Khannian  They construct a wall under boulders ,it turns into a tunnel like space.They make walls with stone and wood.There was a house at the top in the   village of Khal.The rock came down in a land sliding of 1950’s and since then the family resided there.Even 2005 earthquake did not affect that house. 
Construction of Animal Shelters 

Separate space for each animal.

 

Cow Dung Channel

 

Food supply Channel

 

Low height shelters

 

Khannian  Animal shelters are made out of straw, stone and wood.Locals have large wooden logs inside to separate each animal .There is specific channel for cow dung which is collected later on and used as a fertilizer in the fields.Animal shelters are low height to keep animals warm in extreme climate.They are usually dark from inside ,there is no light source for the animals. 

 

Temporary Land use  Khannian Mud houses on the land of the village are temporary, as the land is owned by Shahs. They give their land to villagers to live there temporarily as they take care of their fields and animals. 
Horizontal distribution of Land  Khannian Local name: ShaamilatLand below the road is owned by local villagers. Whereas , the mountain tops are owned by the government
Dhajji, a type of Construction  Khannian Local name: “Dhajji” (type of construction)In this specific type of construction, they arrange wooden planks in a zigzag manner and fill it with mud and stones.This is done while constructing a wall to increase its strength.

Personal Note: This is often seen in animal shelters, and they do not plaster these walls with mud.

 

 

Water Supply System  Khannian Local names: “Choa” is spring, ”Nullah” is water channel, “Nud” is a river.Description: They have underground water pipes to supply water to the village. Basically, it regulates spring water through pipe networks. Stream water where it gets combined from different areas makes a Luke warm pool.

 

 

Ventilation Shaft  Khannian Few houses had shafts in their houses to ensure ventilation. 
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Construction Pattern 

Wooden Columns

 

Stone masonary

 

Battons in ceiling

 

 

 

Batakundi The houses in Battakundi have wooden column structure, which are at 3 feet distance from each other. Stone masonry is commonly observed in the village. Ceilings are composed of battens which support it. Materials for construction are river stone and mud. The floor is mud plastered and they use Garmala twice a week to maintain it. 
Zig Zag Pathways  Batakundi  They have zig zag walking pathways up and down the hill to go to nearby houses or village.

 

 

Cultivation on Terraces  Batakundi They have fields on contours in the form of terraces.Personal note: They dry the grass in the sun and save it under the shelter made of sacks.