House Types and Construction

The type of house forms in the Sunderbans reflects a relationship between the community and their ecology. The spatial configuration of a typical house comprises an internal multipurpose space (ghor) and single to multiple verandahs (baranda). Clusters of homes, typically extended families, are organized around a shared courtyard—a space for gatherings and communal activities. 

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The innermost space - the ghor has no structural divisions, blurring the boundaries of functions such as  sleeping, studying, and worshipping, centered around the thakurghor (a sacred nook). This space is flanked by inner barandas which extends the function of the house.  The larger baranda often forms the entrance and doubles as a cooking space with a chula, it is also a place for household chores, social gatherings, and everyday interactions. In contrast, the smaller verandah often doubles as a stable for livestock such as cows, goats, hens, and ducks. Recently, with a shift in livelihood, these spaces sometimes become parking spaces for  totos (electric rickshaw) or van gadis (carts). Farming is the primary occupation, with both men and women working side by side in the fields. A separate gola (hut-like structure) stores harvested crops, which is protected by their sacred deity. Most of the families also maintain bagaan (kitchen gardens), using the produce for personal consumption or sale.
 

The construction materials are sourced from the surroundings. Historically these materials were sourced from the mangrove forest but since the Forest Act of 1885, it is illegal to use any resources from the forest. The columns of the house were initially constructed by using poshur (a type of mangrove) but now, these columns have been replaced by using precast concrete. Houses are built on high plinths to mitigate flooding during heavy rains and cyclones. The walls of this type are built by using wattle and daub technique, which is a mixture of mud and cow dung, goran (a type of mangrove) reinforced in

it. 

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There are 4 types of goran -

Chita : thin sticks usually used for windows

Khopa : used for structural member for the roof also for the fence of the house

Kodha : these are the longer sticks used for the construction of the wall 

Khuti : these sticks have a bigger diameter used as secondary columns for the wall. 

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The thickness of the walls ranges from 8 to 15 cm. There are 8 types of roof forms or chala found here, a chalas is considered as a planar roof, for example shown below in the diagram.  The roofs are crafted from either thatch or corrugated steel. The angle of the thatch roof is slightly more inclined than that of corrugated steel ones. Goran and bamboo are used for the construction of the truss of the roof. The pukur (pond) serve as vital reservoirs of freshwater due the monsoon and are used throughout the year for bathing, drinking water and are also used for fishing—a secondary source of livelihood for many families. It is created while excavating mud for construction of the mud houses. Each family cluster has its own pukur, reinforcing a sense of self-sufficiency.

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​They have different units of measurement while constructing a typical house.

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 1 हाथ = 18 inches 

The length of the house is dairghya (দৈর্ঘ্য)

and the breadth of the house is aadh (আধা)

The area of the house is referred to as bondo (বন্ধো ) 

For a typical house if the bondo (area) is 13 then,

13 bondo = 8 dairghya + 5 aadh

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Time for construction of this house is approximately 15 days. They at least need two mistry (carpenter) and two helpers to build the house/labourers.