6.4. NATIONAL BUILDING CODE OF INDIA

• Group A: Residential Buildings
• Group B: Educational Buildings
• Group C: Institutional Buildings
• Group D: Assembly Buildings
• Group E: Business Buildings
• Group F: Mercantile Buildings
• Group G: Industrial Buildings
• Group H: Storage Buildings
• Group I: Hazardous Buildings

The National Building Code of India classifies buildings into various groups based on their primary purpose. Each group denotes the function of the building, which is crucial for ensuring safety, compliance with regulations, and the provision of necessary facilities. For example, Group A covers residential buildings, emphasizing aspects like comfort and living space. Group B focuses on educational buildings like schools and colleges, which need spaces conducive to learning. In summary, proper classification helps in planning and ensures that buildings meet specific requirements.

Consider planning a city where each area is designated for a specific purpose. Just like a shopping center is designated for businesses and entertainment, homes are grouped together for residential comfort. This city planning ensures that the right services and infrastructure are available for the buildings' intended use.

Depending on the height, need and various other factors, multi storey buildings are classified into the following:

1. Low Rise building: A low rise multi storey building has few storeys (typically less than four), with the usage of elevators and stairs for vertical circulation.
2. Mid Rise building: A Mid Rise building has a number of storeys ranging from 4 to 12.
3. High Rise building: A High Rise building has a number of storeys ranging from 12 to 40, with the use of lifts and stairs.
4. Skyscraper building: A tall and habitable steel building having storeys more than 40 but height less than 300m is considered a skyscraper.
5. Super tall building: A Super tall building is the steel building with its height exceeding 300m.
6. Mega tall building: Mega tall buildings exceed 600m in height.

Multi-storey buildings are categorized based on their height and functional requirements. Low-rise buildings are typically under four stories, providing easy access with stairs or lifts. Mid-rise buildings are between four to twelve stories, often found in urban areas, while high-rise buildings start from twelve stories and can reach up to forty. A skyscraper is an extremely tall structure, over forty stories high but less than 300m tall. Super tall buildings exceed 300m, and mega tall buildings surpass 600m. Each classification has different design, engineering, and regulatory considerations.

Imagine residential structures as layers in a cake. A low-rise is like a one or two-layer cake, easily reachable without any special tools. A mid-rise could be a three-layer cake, needing tall utensils to serve, while a skyscraper is like a tall multi-layered cake that requires more advanced equipment to manage its height and stability.

Different types of residential Building, plot size, and their frontages:

• Detached Building: Above 250 m², Above 12 m frontage
• Semi-Detached Building: 125-250 m², 8-12 m frontage
• Row type Building: 50-125 m², 4.5-8 m

Note: Minimum frontage on any street is 6m; for row housing, it may be 5.5m.

The National Building Code stipulates minimum plot sizes and frontage requirements for different residential designs. Detached buildings require a larger area and greater frontage to ensure adequate space and access. Semi-detached buildings have mid-range requirements to balance efficiency and privacy. Row-type buildings are compact, with smaller plot sizes and frontages, designed to maximize land use while still complying with regulations. This framework prevents overcrowding and ensures adequate light and air flow.

Think of a neighborhood as a puzzle; each piece (building) has to fit into a specific spot with given dimensions. If one piece is too big, it won’t fit without crowding the others—similar to the role of minimum plot sizes and frontages in ensuring harmony in residential design.

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