: Built of Hemp, Unique Home Harvests Rain Sun While Purifying Air Too #IndiaNEWS #Sustainability In the lap of the Himalayas of Uttarakhand’s Pauri Garhwal district lies the hamlet of Faldakot Malla,

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Built of Hemp, Unique Home Harvests Rain Sun While Purifying Air Too #IndiaNEWS #Sustainability
In the lap of the Himalayas of Uttarakhand’s Pauri Garhwal district lies the hamlet of Faldakot Malla, about 35 km away from Rishikesh. Home to a little over 100 residents, the nearest motorable road from the village is a 40-minute trek, offering mountain enthusiasts a scenic escape from the commotion and chaos of metropolitan life.
Among the handful of local accommodations available in the region, a two-bedroom homestay here stands out for being among the country’s very few buildings to have predominantly used industrial hemp-based construction materials. At the Himalayan Hemp Eco Stays, by-products of the cannabis plant are featured not only in its floors, walls and roof but also a few items within its interiors.
Set up by architect couple Namrata Kandal and Gaurav Dixit, the eco-friendly homestay has been built entirely out of ‘hemp bio aggregate lime concrete’ units. Commonly referred to as hempcrete, these blocks are made out of a mixture of hemp plant shives (branches), a lime binder, ply ash and mineral additives. With its natural composition and weather-resistant properties, hempcrete makes for reliable construction material in the state prone to natural calamities such as earthquakes, flash floods and forest fires.
“Up until 2018, we used to work with a prominent architectural firm in Delhi. We moved base here to research and promote hemp-based construction components and technology with our startup Gohemp Agroventures, which we began with three other architects,� Namrata tells The Better India.
“Himalayan Hemp Eco Stays is the first hempcrete homestay in India. The idea was to create a purely sustainable building that could serve as a proof of concept of the environmental benefits of using hempcrete. Gaurav and I have worked hard to make it all possible,� she says, adding that the couple used their savings of Rs 30 lakh to construct the homestay.
Spread over an 800 square feet area, Namrata says Himalayan Hemp Eco Stays operates on a ‘zero-energy’ model with its 3-kilowatt rooftop solar panels and a 4,000-litre underground rainwater harvesting tank, water from which is drawn using a hand pump. Treated water from a wastewater facility at the premises also helps nourish flowers and vegetables in its accompanying garden.
Since its inauguration on November 24 by Tirath Singh Rawat, former chief minister of Uttarakhand, the homestay has played host to about 10 tourists, shares Namrata. It can accommodate up to four residents at a time, for the cost of Rs 2,400 each per day, she adds.

An Earthquake, Water & Fire Resistant Haven
“We began the construction in January 2020, but the pandemic slowed down the process,� says Namrata.

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