Location : Pashupatinath Temple Premises – Gaushala, Kathmandu
Description of Project: Pashupatinath Temple is one of the most important religious temples for Hindus around the world. For its rich historical, religious, and cultural significance, the temple was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. It is visited by millions of devotees yearly. The crowds are greatest during festivals such as Shiva Ratri and Teej. Earlier, the construction of new structures adjoining the temple and in its periphery posed a threat to the integrity of the temple. Keeping that in mind, the late King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev formed Pashupatinath Development Trust first under his chairmanship and later under that of the late queen his wife. The trust prepared a master plan for greater Pashupatinath area. I was a consultant hired to prepare a detailed design and working details for the entire core area.
The planning of the entire area gave importance to the social, cultural, religious, environmental, and archeological values and standards of the nation. The plan enhanced its original beauty and adding facilities to attract pilgrims and promote religious tourism. Additional facilities such as the yagyashala, pati, dhungedhara, deep prajwolan area, terraced plaza and podiums to perform religious rituals, rest rooms, tourist information Center, banks, infirmary, and prawachan area were added. Archaeologically and historically important structures, the landscaping, and related infrastructural facilities were all upgraded. The entire area was designed to be friendly for Children, senior citizens, and differently-abled people.
All black-topped motorable areas, cemented walkways, dabali, and plazas were replaced with stone-and-brick pavement to give them an ancient look. Also in the interest of preservation, the movement of vehicles within the core area of Pashupatinath was also prohibited. The changes made the entire temple complex a tourist spot rather than just the main temple
Location : Pashupatinath Temple Premises – Kathmandu
Description of project: This is the first electric crematorium building situated within the premises of Pashupatinath Aryaghat near the ghat of Bagmati River. It is equipped with the most sophisticated modern mechanical equipment for cremation in all of Nepal. The building houses two cremators where cremation takes place within enclosed furnaces in and environmentally friendly way and has a provision for one more cremator to be installed in the future. The building also has a waiting lounge, separate shower areas for men and women, public toilets, a mortuary that can hold up to 20 bodies at a time, an operation room for human organ donation along with the ghat area with provisions for performing religious rituals. The building is based on Nepalese architecture style with a brick façade, wooden windows, carved doors and pagoda-style roof. It harmonizes with the
architectural character of the surrounding monuments while at the same time being structurally safe against fires and earthquakes.
Location – Jawalakhel, Lalitpur
Description of project: This multifunctional hall located within St. Mary’s School premises in Jawalakhel, Patan, has a total built-up area of 34,398 sq. ft. The hall includes a 1050-seat main auditorium as well as two green rooms with changing areas, bathrooms and showers, a backdrop storage area, and light and sound control rooms. The hall was designed in a flexible manner to accommodate a wide variety of events, including indoor sports and entertainment, tennis tournaments, large conferences, and workshops. The building also houses six classrooms, a 75-seat audio-visual hall, a 150-seat conference/seminar hall and 300-person mess hall. While designing the hall, factors such as external and internal traffic, ease of movement, zoning of different activities, and interrelations and harmony with adjoining buildings, both existing and proposed, were incorporated to achieve a smooth and uninterrupted flow of space.
Location : Birendranagar, Surkhet
Description of project: A detailed project report has been completed and the process of construction tender is ongoing
This complex incorporates six ministerial offices and one chief ministerial office building block with supporting facilities and a central landscaped garden featuring a water fountain, plaza and flag poles. Three of those buildings house six ministries, two in each building, and one building houses the chief ministry. All the buildings have their own individual multipurpose sections for various activities and basement parking for both two and four-wheelers and are designed to be economical and flexible enough for future expansion and interchangeability. Great importance was given to security as well as a technologically advanced system, modern techniques, and an improved working environment. The façade fuses modern and traditional architecture and uses local materials such as slate, stone, and locally made bricks. The ministries also incorporate facilities and rooms for lactation and child care to promote supportive culture. It also has a staff cafeteria with entertainment facilities, an IT section, a library with a research section, an infirmary, an ATM, and differently-abled friendly facilities.
Keeping the cost, land area and overall requirements in mind, each building was designed as twin blocks, each housing one ministry. This approach minimized the overall utilization of space, cost. and construction time. It also kept operational costs at a minimum as each building has a common core with a common reception area, security checking point, information desk, restrooms, waiting area as well as its own dedicated wing for individual functioning. There is a balanced master plan with buildings flanged around a central courtyard to take advantage of natural light and ventilation. This design also minimizes the transit time from one block to another and thereby reduces pollution. Protection against fires and earthquakes has also been considered. The master plan is environmentally friendly overall.
Location – Jamal, Kathmandu
Description: A detailed project report (DPR) has been completed and construction tender is ongoing
The Nepal National Library building complex with a total built-up area of 14,800 sq m at Jamal, in the heart of Kathmandu, is proposed to be designed as a homage to the rich cultural and traditional architectural style of Kathmandu Valley during the Malla era with a functional and contemporary spatial arrangement internally. The building, both inside and out, will stand as a prime example of our excellent Nepali heritage and architecture and boast exquisite artistry, craftsmanship and workmanship.
The library building is proposed to stand on 3978 sq m of land with surface parking for 100 two-wheelers and separate entry and exit gates. The entrance will have a grand porch. The building is divided into three major zones and has a double basement for 65 four-wheelers and book storage. The central zone connects to two main buildings and itself houses the main entrance lobby and reception, an inquiry/information section, a book dispatch-and-returns area, a café, an exhibition hall, and an audiovisual hall.
The northern block is to house a reading lounge, children’s section and playroom, a special-capacity section (for the visually and hearing challenged), meeting rooms, old, young, and general group-study sections, research and group rooms, an exhibition gallery with small halls, a national language section, a thesis section, journal/periodical study rooms, and English language section, a manuscript/rare book collection, award-winning books, a 70-person conference room, an ICT section with a computer lab, and a multifunctional hall with a pre-conference hall and café. The southern block houses an archive section, a reading zone, offices, a dining area and kitchen, a 400-person conference hall with a VIP chamber and support room, and a 300-person gallery hall.
The library as a whole will be designed to house 500,000 books in a variety of sections. Since it will house multiple important documents and archives, it is proposed to be constructed with one hour of fire-resistance capacity for safeguarding purposes. The entire building is to be constructed with a factor of safety from both earthquakes and fires. My son engineer Shikhar Singh Shah has also contributed to the design of this project
Location – Birgunj, Nepal.
Description of project :
The five-bigha Ghadiarwa Pokhari is a historical site in Birgunj popular as a religious and tourist destination. It used to be little more than a pond used primarily by locals to conduct religious rituals during Chaat Parwa.
The former mayor of Birgunj, Mr. Bimal Shrivastav, hired my consultancy to design and redevelop the pokhari and its surroundings as a religious and recreational park for the by upgrading the central Surya temple and constructing a connecting bridge. The master plan and detailed design added facilities such as shaded seating areas in all four corners, tea stalls, rest rooms, walking trails, and ghat. All these additions made it easier to perform Chaat Parwa.
The area also includes Nepal’s first musical fountains. This is one of the park’s main attractions, both for locals and for people from all over Nepal.
Ghadiarwa Pokhari is now a major landmark in Birgunj. This eco-friendly and green park is used for relaxation, worship, and religious activities. It was inaugurated by His Majesty late King Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev on 13 Poush, 2056 B.S. (1999).
Location: Dharan, Kathmandu
Description of project:
The master plan of the BP Koirala Institute of Health and Sciences at Dharan includes a 200-bed hostel for under-graduates, a 150-bed hostel for graduates, and a mess building. It was constructed in the year 2007 using a neoclassical design to match with the surrounding buildings. The aim of the design was to incorporate all the facilities and amenities students in hostels require to have a healthy space with spacious and well-ventilated rooms. The central portion of each hostel building accommodates all the common facilities such as a recreation hall, a reception/visitors’ room, a gym, an infirmary, isolation rooms, and storerooms as well as a warden wing and a main staircase. This area is easily reachable from all the wings of the hostel. There is an emergency staircase and other safety measures in case of fire or earthquake. The mess block is easily accessible from both hostels and has different facilities for students. The hostel blocks and mess building are oriented so that they have a central courtyard with beautiful landscaping that ensures that every room has fresh air and natural light and ventilation. The cost of energy was thereby minimized.
Location –Nepal
Description of Project:
The Military Engineering Services (MES) complex was designed in the year 1977 for the maintenance of army equipment and vehicles. Its master plan includes an office block, hostel blocks for junior commissioned officers and other ranks, and a block of workshops and warehouses. The buildings were designed to be cost-effective by minimizing the circulation space, orienting the building to take advantage of natural light and ventilation, and use of simple and economical finishing materials and working details. The design also prioritized security and safety.
Location – Kusumtar, Kamalamai Municipality, Sindhuli, Nepal.
Description of Project :
The Sunkoshi Marin Diversion Multipurpose Project is an inter-basin transfer project to transfer water from Sunkoshi River to the Marin Khola, a tributary of Bagmati. During the construction of the project, the need for living space arose and thus we were recruited as consultants to plan the master plan that comprises of Employer’s Camp (Pre-fabricated Buildings and Permanent Building ) along with guard house. The Employer’s Camp area is located at a Terraced Landscaped divided geographically into three Zones with connections via Staircases and Pathways spreading over 12760 sq.m. of land.
The Upper most part houses the three Permanent (RCC) Buildings of total built up area of 1468.35 sq.m. along with a Guard House, Sports and Recreational Area, Landscaped Area and Parking for both 2 and 4 wheeler vehicles. Two of those RCC Buildings are purely used for Residential Purpose, while the remaining one is being used for both Office and Residential Purposes.
The Middle and Lower areas accommodates all the pre-fabricated Building (total built up area – 1990 sq.m.) which are a mix of Residential Buildings, Mess and Utility Buildings, Office Building along with Landscaping , connecting pathways and a parking Lot. The Residential building are categorized into four sub-categories – International Consultants (8 Units), National Key Consultants(18 Units), Senior Support Staff(12 units) and Support Staffs (8 Units). As for the Mess and Utility Buildings – they are categorized in two parts – International and National Consultants Building and Senior and Support Staffs Building.
Location: Lainchour, Kathmandu, Nepal
Description of project:
The Dairy Development Corporation Complex at Lainchour, Kathmandu, was the first dairy factory in Nepal. It is fully equipped with all the required facilities. The master plan comprises the factory and office buildings, staff quarters, guardhouses, and store rooms. It is designed in a contemporary architecture style.
Location: Biratnagar, Nepal
Description of project:
The Dairy Development Corporation Complex in Biratnagar was the second dairy factory built in Nepal.
The factory complex, with its state-of-the-art infrastructure and highly qualified dairy specialists, is one of the largest producers of milk in Nepal. The complex comprises factory buildings, silos, an office building, staff quarters, guardhouses, and storerooms. The buildings are designed in a contemporary manner with great importance given to function
Location: Thamel, Kathmandu
Description of project:
South Asia Association of Regional center (SAARC) having its long establishment in Thamel, Kathmandu Nepal, was in need of a conference hall to accommodate 250 delegates and to upgrade the existing secretariat building including development of Interior design & landscape garden which we did it in the year 2008 A.D as shown in the photograph.
While designing the conference hall the design concept was adopted to match and harmonize its architecture with the Existing SAARC Secretariat Complex which was designed based on low rise and high density Concept, to make it safe against earthquake. The design was made by interlinking it with Existing Secretariat Complex both Externally and Internally conveniently, without disturbing the activities of each other.
The overall design is based on Neo-Classical style using some of the Nepalese Architectural elements such as slope roof with Jhingati tiles, brick facade, carved door with Nepalese arts etc.
The interior of the hall is based on Nepalese Arts and craftsmanship and equipped fully with latest light and sound system by treating the walls and ceiling with Acoustic panels
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