Bamboo is perhaps one of the most precious natural resources India possesses. But as is the case with many of us, city-based entrepreneur Shriniwas Khare too wasn’t aware about the usefulness of bamboos, though he had an entire plantation at his ancestral farmhouse in Mulshi.
“Though we had been growing bamboos for past several years, it was about 20 years ago when some private buyers started purchasing bamboos from us at a decent price, that I became curious about the uses of this plant,” said Khare, who would later go on to create a patented technology to use bamboo in construction.
Following some research, Khare was awed by the myriad uses of this robust variety of grass. From there on, his perspective changed.
“In India, the emphasis has mostly been only on production of bamboos and not on inventing new ways to use this grass to its fullest potential,” said Khare, who is now a bamboo expert.
Khare and his team of seven villagers have been experimenting with the grass for the last 20 years now. He has successfully developed and implemented methods to use the grass in the construction industry. His patented technology involves mixing resin and bamboo to develop industrial gratings which are otherwise made of steel.
Explaining the utility of bamboo, Khare said, “The structural strength of bamboo is twice that of wood and equivalent to mild steel. Its unique combination of toughness and flexibility makes it an ideal material for diverse applications from building houses to medicinal purposes. The need today is to promote the use of this grass in various forms and not only restrict it to handicraft industry.”
For most of us, accustomed to seeing delicate artifacts and mats made from bamboos, the fact that bridges and houses are being made from bamboos is a revelation. Khare has developed many structures using bamboos grown locally. He said that his team alone has developed about one thousand utility items from bamboo.
Some of the structural items include makeshift bridges, toilets, single-storey structures, floorings and boats in
various villages across the country.
“The bridges that we built in villages cost Rs10,000-15,000 and can ferry five people at a time. It takes around three days to build it. The advantage of this is reduced cost and burden on nature. Besides, the materials are locally available and the technique is simple,” said Khare.
While travelling across India to educate villagers about the uses of bamboo, he found that the overflowing rivers and small streams are a menace in the monsoons.
“I was constantly thinking about a solution to resolve this matter and a friend told me about a tangent bridge structure in London. I then started looking for ways to build a bridge with bamboos,” said Khare. The critical aspect of using bamboo as a construction material lies in the design and joints, explained Khare.
Khare is now currently working with industrialists and local groups to help educate people about the structural uses of bamboo.
He said, “China has developed such advanced technology to utilise bamboos and although we have ancient knowledge, we are still unaware of its uses.”
Providing a solution he said, “The government must include teaching about the uses of bamboo in vocational courses and it should become a key objective of the National Bamboo Mission.”
