CHAPTER-3: CASE STUDY 1: ALMORA VILLAGE, UTTARAKHAND

CHAPTER-3: CASE STUDY 1: ALMORA VILLAGE,

UTTARAKHAND

Almora is a famous tourist destination in Uttarakhand situated in the foothills and 1638 metres above the sea level. Some of its famous attractions include The Jageshwar Temple and Nanda Devi Temple.

Almora has a rich cultural heritage and traditional architectural style which is visible in most of the villages in Almora district.

The houses in the Almora village are situated on stepped lands without disturbing the natural terrain.

The access to these houses is generally through the agricultural lands and much far away from the main roads.

Generally, a typical house has a verandah, a gaushala or goth(place for keeping cattle's), living area, kitchen, store room and their farms around the house.

Fig 7: Map of Uttarakhand with Almora district Source: okuttarakhand.com

Fig 8: A typical village of the Almora district Source: okuttarakhand.com

BARAKOT VILLAGE, ALMORA

Barakot is a small village in the foothills of Almora District of Uttarakhand. Barakot is known as a town but has no functions like a town. Barakot has a mix of row houses and single houses. The row houses are planned in a straight manner with houses on both sides of the road.

The pedestrian street is very narrow and the houses have arched windows and doors with balconies supported on stone columns.

The houses in this village are mostly placed along the contours and have agricultural fields in front of them. Terrace farming is adopted in most parts of Kumaon because of the sloppy terrain.