SRINAGAR, Oct 15: Poor construction practices in occupied Kashmir contributed to the massive scale of damage after the earthquake, the Indian-held state’s government said on Saturday.

“Experts who visited the calamity sites said there were certain important things missing in the construction of the houses that led to the massive damage to property,” a government statement said.

“Stone masonry walls were without mortar and window areas covered more than one-third of the walls while it ought to have been less,” the statement said, citing architectural experts.

The Oct 8 tremor flattened or damaged more than 114,000 houses in occupied Kashmir’s worst-hit sectors of Uri and Tangdar, near the Line of Control (LoC).

“In future, extreme care must be taken in new construction,” the statement said, offering expert guidelines to local builders.

Houses in Kashmir are built of rock and heavy timber logs and often perch on steep mountain slopes. Builders rarely take construction permits from the administration.

The statement said experts will construct ‘model homes’ as a tutorial for people who need to rebuild their flattened houses.—AFP