Old houses in Ranchi city are under threat.

Old houses in Ranchi city are gradually vanishing.

by

Dr. Nitish Priyadarshi

Some of the old houses in Ranchi city of Jharkhand State of India are under threat due to the effect of biological weathering. These houses are gradually being destroyed as they are covered up with plants and weeds. All these houses are more than hundred years old made during British rule in India. Most affected are abandoned house. In one case as shown in the photos the small ancient house in the heart of the city is totally covered with plants, trees and shrubs. It resembles very much with haunted house. These houses of archeological importance are gradually breaking down due to negligence of the state government.

Buildings made of any stone, brick or concrete are susceptible to the same weathering agents as any exposed rock surface. Also statues monuments and ornamental stonework can be badly damaged by natural weathering processes. This is accelerated in areas severely affected by acid rain.

Buildings begin to break down the minute they are assembled. Weathering occurs as
decomposition (chemical breakdown) or disintegration (physical breakdown) or both. One type of weathering can lead to another.

Weathering takes place through a combination of biological, mechanical and chemical means. We have all experienced the results of weathering first hand. Any visit to an old cemetery find us peering at the blurred inscriptions on old marble tombstones. These inscriptions were once perfectly legible, but with the passage of time, the small fractures and cracks in the rock have made it vulnerable to attack by aqueous solutions and growth of the plants

Buildings made of limestone are particularly susceptible to weathering. In the absence of modern cementing material, limestone was used as cementing material in building houses in India. In Ranchi also limestone was used as cementing material.
The deterioration of the structures such as old abandoned bridges outside Ranchi city and old houses has increased dramatically in the last few decades.