THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Is your house waterlogged or under threat of getting inundated due to overnight road widening? Just lift it and move.It’s true. One builder alone has carried out more than 500 such projects so far in Kerala.Faced with the ever-pressing issues of waterlogging, lack of drainage and road widening along state and national highways, many in Kerala are opting for the unique measure to preserve the original structure of their houses.
Though it may sound odd, literally lifting and shifting buildings is now a plausible option to all those bogged down by such problems. Many are also opting to get their homes or buildings lifted to increase their commercial value. Both residential and commercial buildings are being raised or moved to distances as far as 200 m.
As a general rule, buildings are lifted by around one m. Depending on each customer’s requirements, the height to be increased may differ. According to rough estimates, the cost of lifting a 2,000 sqft structure would come to around `7.5 lakh to `8 lakh and can be completed in 45-60 days.Haryana-based Aashirwad Building Lifting and Construction Pvt Ltd has already undertaken more than 500 such projects in the state, with a majority of them in Kozhikode, Kochi, Kuttanad, Tiruvalla and Kannur. “What began as a one-off activity in Kozhikode a few years ago has gained popularity recently with more people opting for such a solution,” says Shyam Kumar Chouhan, director of the firm.
“We have been engaged in lifting and moving of buildings in Kerala for some years now. The rough expenses for lifting would be 25 per cent of the total construction cost of the building. For moving a building, we charge about `200 per sqft for less than 100 m. “The cost differs based on multiple factors including the total load (whether the building is multi-storied), the area of the structure and the distance to be moved. We recently lifted a commercial building at Tiruvalla by eight ft,” Chouhan claims.
A couple of other builders too offer similar solutions in waterlogged regions. At a time when construction costs are sky-rocketing, the ‘lifting and shifting’ option can prove to be an effective technique in preserving existing buildings.
How it is done
The lifting of a building is done through jacks.
The process begins with a hole being dug in the foundation after which jacks are inserted into the carved out space one after another. Once a proper, wide ‘channel’ is in place, it is filled with concrete and other building materials to ensure a solid foundation just above the original one.
The existing water, drainage and power connections of the structure are not disturbed. If a building has to be shifted – like in cases of road widening – it is first raised from the ground and moved by millimetres.