Couple uses recycled plastic waste to build houses
hyderabad — A Hyderabadbased couple has taken up the initiative of constructing houses and other structures using sheets made of processed plastic waste.
The entrepreneur couple Prashant Lingam and his wife Aruna, who have a decadelong experience in designing houses and bamboo furniture, decided to use recycled waste for their work after they saw a video in 2017 of a bull being operated to remove plastic from its stomach.
“We got scared after watching that video. Then we started researching on the subject. The infrastructural need of the country is increasing enormously so we thought of building a house with plastic only. We came up with a substitute for plywood and made a plastic plank which is made from “milk packets” and can be used for making furniture, toilets, benches and bus shelters,” Lingam said.
The first house Lingam built in Hyderabad’s Uppal was of about 800 square feet. It was constructed using seven tonnes of plastic.
“That much plastic was saved from being incinerated, it was used to construct a new house. There are apprehensions among people who are
new to the concept of living in a plastic house. But there is nothing to worry about. It is as good as any other regular brick and mortar house,” Lingam said.
While a concrete house can
cost a minimum of Rs4 million, a plastic house costs only Rs700 per square feet, said Lingam. Moreover, he added, “The plastic house is water, fire and heat resistant. Thus, it can last for 30 - 40 years.”
Lingam has been getting support from the Telangana government and Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation for his work.
“Some schools have asked us to build benches for them,” he said.
The entrepreneur further said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his Independence Day speech, has also called for putting an end to single-use plastic.
“We as citizens of the country have to do something. We should look for alternatives for plastic. There are alternatives available in jute, bamboo and cotton,” he added. —