• Present status & practices of building construction in

Nepal

• Specific Considerations in design & construction of

buildings in Nepal

• Indigenous technology in building design & construction

 Present Status of Building Construction in Nepal
Type Types of Estimated Type Types of Building Estimated
Building existing existing Number
Number Pre-primary school 29,272
Government 5,700 Primary school 33,881
offices
Educational Lower secondary 27,582
Local agencies 16,192 Institutions
Office Building Corporation 555 (111,581) Secondary School 16,466

(70,798) Higher Secondary 10,149

Cooperatives 25,167
Campus, universities 3,231
Registered 20,772
companies Temple, Stupa, Math 2,664
Religious
NGOs 1,962 Bauddha Bihar 192
(3,075)
Cinema Hall 399 Mosque, Church etc. 219
Entertainment Community 60 Heritage Palaces 70
(470) Building (3,766) Public rest house 3,696
Museum 11 Health Hospital 315
Sports Stadium 11 (13,179) Non-hospital 12,864
(81) Covered Hall 70 Source: Business Plan DUDBC, 2071
Present Status of Building Construction in Nepal
• Estimated existing number of buildings: 448,161
• Projected annual growth: 20,417
• Though Government initiated survey of government building in 2051,
such attempts were made in different years, it was completed in first
phase.
• Building Management Information System (BMIS) was prepared for
recording of government buildings & for updating, but it has not been
materialized yet.
• Updating is not being regularly.
Present Status of Building Construction in Nepal
Urban
Type Ownership Number
Type Ownership Number
Individual Owned 4,623,653
Individual Owned 593,842
Building Rental 694,701 Building Rental 420,483
(termed as
Institutional 34,313 (termed as
housing) Institutional 17,392
housing)
5,423,297 Others 70,630
1,045,575 Others 13,858

Rural
Type Ecological belt Number Type Ownership Number
Individual Mountain 363,698 Individual Owned 4,029,811
Building Building Rental 274,218
Hill 2,532,041
(termed as (termed as
Terai 2,527,558 housing) Institutional 16,921
housing)
5,423,297 4,377,722 Others 56,772

Source: Census 2068

 Present Practices of Building Construction in Nepal
Prevailing practices for individual building
• Owner built system
• Labor intensive system
• Informal market system
• No/minimum focus towards maintenance
• Though construction after getting building permit system is established by law,
either no building permit is obtained before construction or permit is obtained
just for record & alteration is made in design & construction.
In recent years, trend of apartments & group housing is prevailing, though
focused in Kathmandu valley.
In earthquake affected districts, Build Back Better (BBB) approach is being
applied
Present Practices of Building Construction in Nepal
Prevailing practices for government building
• Formal process
• Labor intensive system
• Through formal contract process
• Though Department of Urban Development & Building Construction
(DUDBC) is assigned for government building, one door system is not being
followed.
• No maintenance plan is prepared.
• Budget is allocated on ad-hoc basis (both for construction & maintenance).
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal
General principle for building design should be such that it should be safe,
adaptive to local condition & affordable.
Design phase
Principles related to land
• Land should not be risk sensitive. If found sensitive, detail
investigation should be made & design should be made accordingly. If
not economical, the site should be avoided.
• Land should be such that it requires lesser cost for construction.
• It should abide the byelaw such as distance from river or flood prone
area (30 m from Perennial River) and regarding slope (less than 30
degree).
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal
Regarding building & associated infrastructure
• Design should be such that it should follow Intermediate construction
technology (hybrid of traditional & modern) for Nepal.
• Building should be local climate responsive.
• Building should be friendly to the occupants.
• It should be energy efficient or in modern term green building concept
should be followed.
• The design should be such that it needs economic infrastructures and
can easily be maintained.
• For low income people, previous design and drawing should be repeated
rather than to make new design to make the design economical.
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal
Regarding finance
• The design should be such that the housing should be made affordable
not only in construction but in maintenance also.
• Establishment for financial institution providing loan (at low interest)
for building should be encouraged.
• Government should enable financing program for low income group or
regulate NGOs/cooperatives for cooperative housing or self-help
program.
Building Permit procedure
• Compliance of Building byelaw
• Compliance of Building Code
• Taking building permit
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal
Planning Phase
Architectural
• Form should follow function
• Functional aspect should be dominant rather than aesthetic importance.
• Should be coherent with neighborhood.
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal
Design phase key features (Six areas)
• Context fit
• Fit to natural setting
• Climate responsive
• Local material & technology
• Historical & cultural setting
• Social setting
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal
Design phase key features (Six areas)
• Functionality
• Visual impression
• Mass composition (Balance between mass & void, Proportion &
rhythm)
• Color & material combination
• Sustainable design
• Efficiency in resource use
• Sustainable waste management
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal
Design phase key features (Six areas)
• Friendliness to the people
• People movement
• Universal design
• Safety & security
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal
Construction Phase
• Though owner built system is prevailing, formal construction market should
be established for individual building also.
• Labor intensive construction modality should be transformed to intermediate
construction technology (Hybrid of traditional and modern one)
• Client, contractor & Engineer relationship
• Planning of material, labor & equipment supply
• Availability of trained labor regarding earthquake resistance construction
• Site safety
Specific considerations in design & construction of buildings in Nepal

In modern context,
• Following Green building technology
• Earthquake resistant
• Consideration of rain water harvesting
Indigenous technology in building design & construction
Ecological region
• Mountain
• Hill
• Kathmandu valley
• Outside Kathmandu valley
• Terai
Indigenous technology in building design & construction
Indigenous building material in Mountain
• Slate
• Wood
• Stone
• Clay Indigenous building material in Hill
In Kathmandu valley
Indigenous building material in Hill
• Stone
outside Kathmandu valley
• Wood
• Stone
• Clay
• Wood
• Lime
• Clay
• Metal
Indigenous technology in building design & construction
Indigenous building material in Terai
• Clay
• Bamboo
• Thatch
• Wood
• Lime
Indigenous technology in building design & construction
Indigenous material in mountain
• Thick mud wall
• Bamboo
• Thatch
• Wood
• Lime
Indigenous technology in building design & construction
Indigenous Design