A winter’s tale: Three-in-one; reinventing the stove

Financial straits make it hard for inventor to keep up with rising orders

MINGORA: With the onset of winter, the demand for clean water rises in Swat. Locals use different methods to warm water – most of which require deforestation and excessive use of electricity.

Bacha Gul, a resident of Hazara village, has invented a stove which not only cooks food but also warms water and by extension an entire room simultaneously. An engineering graduate from Russia, Gul, has managed to create a stove that is not only capable of doing more than one task at a time but is also environmentally friendly.

Give a hoot, don’t pollute

Gul wanted to get rid of excessive deforestation that takes place in Swat. He believed cutting trees in order to acquire firewood was destroying natural habitat of many wildlife species and causing damage to the environment. With his invention, he hopes to preserve natural resources and also curb pollution.

According to Gul, the stove is attached to a geyser via a pipe. The stove boils the water in the geyser which emits heat and can also keep the entire room warm. In addition to boiling water and serving as a local heater, the stove can also cook food at the same time.

This three-in-one invention uses very little firewood to operate and is therefore, very fuel and energy efficient. “Little firewood in the stove keeps it burning for way more than the standard running time,” Gul added.

Akbar Khan, a consumer of the stove from Kabal tehsil said he had been using the stove for the past two years and finds it very industrious. “If more of these are used by the residents, the current rate of deforestation would reduce dramatically,” he added.

Pushing the buttons

The primary raw materials used to make this stove include steel sheets and polyester cotton. A factory has already been developed in the region to make these raw materials.

A technician, Abdul Akbar, who works with Gul, said it takes approximately one day to make one such stove. He added this invention has the potential for high utility if the government provides enough funds for its development.

So far 20,000 stoves have been sold. According to Akbar, the rising demand for these stoves cannot be met due to a lack of adequate funds. “Thousands of orders are in place but unless monetary support can be obtained, stoves will not be ready until summer strikes,” Akbar said.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 15^th, 2016.