Quality infrastructure – A necessity!

6 March 2010

Following the devastating earthquake that shook our tiny Kingdom on September 21, 2009, earthquakes of different magnitudes took place in some countries of the world – China, Haiti and other countries, the most recent one in Chile on Saturday February 27, 2010.

I would like to quote from the Washington Post of March 1, 2010.

“A powerful 8.8 magnitude earthquake rocked Chile early Saturday and triggered a tsunami that threatened every nation around the Pacific Ocean.”

“Earthquake scientists, building engineers and political scientists in Chile and United States agreed that even though half a million homes were heavily damaged during more than 120 seconds of shaking, the fact that so many Chileans survived was a testament to the nation’s enactment and enforcement of stringent building codes.”

It was also reported that the magnitude of earthquake that rocked Chile occurred after more than a century.

As on date, there are apparently no instrument/equipment to pre-warn occurrence of an earthquake and its magnitude. We know that our country is situated in an earthquake prone zone.

The death toll in Haiti was over 220,000 and that in Chile as on March 1, 2010, was over 700 only. Chile took pride in the comparatively low death toll, a result widely attributed to the country’s meticulous planning and preparation.

Back home, most of the infrastructures in eastern part of our country that got damaged due to the earthquake, in my opinion, were rubble masonry on mud, which has nil or no dynamic stress bearing capacity and the homes built by the villagers within their means. We were fortunate that the earthquake took place during the day and there were minimal human casualties. A natural pre-warning has been given. Immediate visits by the His Majesty the Druk Gyalpo and the recent visit by His Majesty the fourth Druk Gyalpo to the affected areas have provided great moral and mental support to the people.

The restoration/rebuilding process is continuing as per the command of His Majesty. The Prime Minister, Ministers and senior government officials also visited the earthquake affected areas. There was also overwhelming response from donors and from all sections of the society in the country.

Though the rebuilding process has begun, there will be some delay in the restoration process for various reasons (as per media reports). But then, we need to ensure that we build homes and other infrastructure that would be safe during re-occurrence of earthquakes in the future. It may not be possible to build homes/infrastructures which could sustain earthquakes of high magnitudes. Even if it was possible, the cost would be enormous, which may not be possible and sustainable for us.

We may plan and build stronger and safer homes/buildings in the urban areas. However, the people in the villages won’t be able to afford such homes/buildings. So there is an absolute necessity to design appropriate houses suitable for the villages, in other words the rural areas.

The issue of suitability of houses/buildings resistant to earthquake will only be a thought process and the reality may be quite remote. But then, we should never loose hope. We need to put in more efforts for research and come out with the most appropriate and ideal houses for the villages/rural areas. I am sure that such prototype designs, if published in the newspapers (as supplement pages), by the agencies concerned will be of great help to the people of the rural areas. We may begin with the theme “small is beautiful”. In other words, small houses but those are safer during the occurrence of earthquakes.

At the same time, the fraternity of engineers and planners will need to realize the importance of constructing quality infrastructure so as to avoid collateral damages in the event of earthquakes. We also need to aim and put in concerted efforts to ensure that we build public infrastructures such as bridges, roads, schools, hospitals, power systems, etc. of the highest quality (even it means a little more costly) so that such infrastructures last till their economic life without posing any danger to human lives or other infrastructures. The enactment and enforcement of stringent building codes, modern technologies (for construction), especially in the urban areas will certainly reduce negative impacts due to earthquakes in the future.

By K. B. Wakhley
Changgidaphu, Thimphu

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