Vijay Govindarajan, now a professor who teaches international business at the US-based Tuck School of Business, has a dream that could become a reality soon.
He wants even the 'very poor' to have a house for just $300 each (around Rs 15,000).
Along with a marketing expert, Christian Sarkar, he wrote a blog on the website of
Harvard Business Review about this possibility last year, and followed with a contest.
Nearly 2,500 people signed up, and there were 300 submissions, one from a team at Mahindra Partners Division.
In late June, Govindarajan announced six individual winners, while Mahindra Partners received a separate global award of recognition for corporate participation.
"The team (Mahindra) will have to convert their paper design to a prototype, after which there will be a pilot and scaling-up of the project in the near future," says Govindarajan.
While the Mahindra team is yet to finalise the date to proceed to the US, Mohan Raghavan, their team mentor, says: "The brief was to design a dwelling which would be sustainable, secure, durable, replicable and dignified, within $300.
"In our entry, we not only attempted to address all these factors but have also made a case for its commercial viability."
When first drafting a blueprint, the Mahindra Partners team called for the use of bricks but this pushed the budget over $400.
Scrapping that idea, the team settled on suru wood, bamboo, and FRP (fibreglass reinforced plastic) sheets - all locally used and widely available in India.
Natural insulation (heat is absorbed) is provided by the mud flooring, while bamboo walls have the strength to withstand storms, fires, rains, snow, earthquakes and other natural calamities.
Suru poles can withstand earthquakes/tremors, while the FRP sheets can protect occupants from heat and rain, while looking aesthetic and providing natural lighting.
A raised plinth and door prevents unwanted entry of
crawling insects and animals, while increasing the level of hygiene and sanity.