Call for using hollow bricks to save money, environment

Stakeholders have stressed the need for using hollow bricks instead of ordinary bricks in view of cost effectiveness and environmental friendliness.

The Building Energy Efficiency in Nepal (BEEN) under the Switch-Asia Grants Programme has launched the technology to produce hollow bricks with assistance from the European Union.

Meanwhile, Mayor of the Lalitpur Metropolitan City Chiribabu Maharjan, Ambassador of the European Union Delegation to Nepal Nona Deprez and representatives of concerned authorities carried out a field-inspection of Hosanna Brick Industry at Harisiddhi in the Metropolis-29 that has been producing hollow bricks.

On the occasion, the industry operator Krishna Awal apprised the inspection team of the process and situation of the production of hollow bricks.

Stating that the technology to produce hollow bricks is efficient economically and environmentally, Mayor Maharjan said the metropolis would manage policy in its promotion.

“I have used hollow bricks when I constructed my house at Bakhundol in 2012. I will also use it in the construction of a new building for the metropolis,” he said.

Hollow bricks are very useful economically and environmentally, Ambassador Deprez said and stressed the need for the development and expansion of the technology. This project would help producers, users and various related organisations, she said.

Assistant Director of the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre Shuva Laxmi Shrestha underscored the need for using the technology considering its quality.

Similarly, Shankar Bahadur Chand, Chairperson of the Federation of Nepal Brick Industries, viewed that there was a need to make a policy to use hollow bricks.

Team leader of the BEEN project Suyas Prajapati said the use of hollow bricks would save Rs 5 billion spent annually in the purchase of coal used to make ordinary bricks.

Approximately Rs 25 billion was out-flowed from Nepal annually to purchase coal for a total of 1,350 brick factories across the country, he said.