Ever visited the Inland Container Depot in Tughlakabad? In this region in the southern outskirts of the national capital, thousands of empty shipping containers just lie. Here’s why. For instance, a container load of material comes in from a country with which India doesn’t have a busy trading relationship, say Greece (where refugees and migrants are housed in containers), and India doesn’t have anything to export, then shipping an empty container will cost above $500. The price of a 40-feet container is between Rs 60,000 and a lakh.
There is a growing overcapacity and a lack of space on ports. Last month, the shipping ministry decided to establish an International Container Transshipment Port at Colachel in Tamil Nadu at an estimated cost of Rs 27,000 crore. About 2.8 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) or about 25 per cent of India’s cargo containers are currently transhipped at international ports like Colombo, Singapore, Port Klang, Salalah and Jebel Ali. This increases cost and causes logistical difficulties.
This is where entrepreneurs like Neeraj Khandelwal step in. “There are enough steel containers within the country that first need to be put to good use,” says the founder of In the Box Space, which turns 20 and 40-ft containers into homes, jacuzzis and bars. The company is four months and three projects old, which feature a swanky pool side bar, a two container outhouse complete with a sauna and sky windows. Depending on the amenities they are furnished with, these are priced between Rs 6 lakh and Rs 21 lakh.
For now, Khandelwal says, the company’s focus is on the luxury space because that is a market ready to invest and experiment. But, as he points out, the cost of setting up a basic residential dwelling in a container is Rs 3 lakh to Rs 3.5 lakh.
More than 10.20 lakhs slum households were estimated to be in existence in urban Delhi in 2012 (NSS 69th round survey). These haphazardly constructed homes flout fire safety norms, have poor ventilation, bad drainage and a heightened risk of electrocution because of open-wiring. “Containers are a safer, cheaper and environment-friendly option and if given a chance, we would like to work with the government on housing solutions,” he says.
So, how does a container turn into a home or another kind of utility space? The Customs House Agent (CHA) does a background check of the company buying the container, because welding specifications are tricky and the roofs tend to tilt inwards. It is insulated and given doors, windows and other design alterations. Then the flooring is changed and the wood and glass is fitted.
Khandelwal grew up in Japan, where he started his wallpaper and stone veneers brand Casadenza. It specialises in 0. 4 mm thin veneers that can even be wrapped around pillars. These are exported to 40 countries, including Bolivia, Germany and the Netherlands. He says that the global design scene is shifting towards eco-friendly and efficient solutions. And thanks to the efforts of people like him, India too can rethink its construction game.