BUILDING CONSERVATION
Jaisalmer Fort Conservation Project, Rajasthan
Location : Jaisalmer, Rajasthan
Area : Sq.Ft.
Status : Ongoing
Area : Sq.Ft.
Status : Ongoing
SDM Architects has been assisting an international team of consultants in a project to monitor the stability of the hill below the Jaisalmer Fort, a UNESCO world heritage monument. The fort, which is on a hill about 30m above the surrounding plain, received piped water only in 1991. Since then, there have been several collapses of the bastion walls. The team was tasked with finding the reasons for these collapses.
The team found that a layer of mudstone in the hill was the main culprit. This is a soil that is very sensitive to water ingress, and virtually dissolves in the presence of water. This has led to collapses in parts of the fort. Building of new hotels within the fort and an imperfect sewage and rainwater drainage system within compound the problem.
The team suggested and successfully implemented a method called inclinometer testing to find out whether there are sub-surface movements in the soil. This is done by drilling vertical boreholes into the hillslopes at critical locations, mainly the corners of the triangle-shaped fort. Flexible plastic tubing is installed in these boreholes. This tubing will move along with the earth wherever subsoil movements occur. A very sensitive probe is sent down the boreholes every 6 months or so, and the exact profile of the borehole is mapped, with readings taken every 0.5m. A comparison of the profiles of a borehole over time will give a clear picture of the direction, location, and magnitude of any subsoil movement.
The aim is to ultimately suggest an implementable solution to safeguard the slope stability of the fort. (With geotechnical engineers Sudhir Deshpande and Dr. John Hughes) The project is being done by the Archeological Survey of India in association with the World Monuments Fund.
Links
WMF Page on Jaisalmer
Jaisalmer in Jeopardy, an NGO that works towards saving Jaisalmer
The team found that a layer of mudstone in the hill was the main culprit. This is a soil that is very sensitive to water ingress, and virtually dissolves in the presence of water. This has led to collapses in parts of the fort. Building of new hotels within the fort and an imperfect sewage and rainwater drainage system within compound the problem.
The team suggested and successfully implemented a method called inclinometer testing to find out whether there are sub-surface movements in the soil. This is done by drilling vertical boreholes into the hillslopes at critical locations, mainly the corners of the triangle-shaped fort. Flexible plastic tubing is installed in these boreholes. This tubing will move along with the earth wherever subsoil movements occur. A very sensitive probe is sent down the boreholes every 6 months or so, and the exact profile of the borehole is mapped, with readings taken every 0.5m. A comparison of the profiles of a borehole over time will give a clear picture of the direction, location, and magnitude of any subsoil movement.
The aim is to ultimately suggest an implementable solution to safeguard the slope stability of the fort. (With geotechnical engineers Sudhir Deshpande and Dr. John Hughes) The project is being done by the Archeological Survey of India in association with the World Monuments Fund.
Links
WMF Page on Jaisalmer
Jaisalmer in Jeopardy, an NGO that works towards saving Jaisalmer
