3. - usaid

schools, public baths,
bazaars, large stores, and
asphalted streets. The
houses will be so:Ld on a
low down payment basis with
long term mortgage and low
interest rate. An early
estimate placed the cost
per house at from $1,300
to $1,600.
Gonabad - May, 1969
Gonabad area - my 1969
Construction began last
winter. On May 13, 1969,
an article in the Tehran
Journal indicated 2500
houses would be ready for
occupancy within two
months . A tot a1 of some
10,000 persons are engaged
in the rebuilding program.
The work is being performed
under difficult cj-rcumstances,
since building
materials such as bricks,
g~pswn, cement, steel
beams and wood have to be
brought in f'rom Tehran,
Zabedan and Meshed.
In reporting on the building
program, one Iranian
newspaper said : "'Unlike
the haphazard building
method applied to the
Qazvin area--where each
organization built. something
without prior research work
--the Khorassan earthquake
reconstruction work has
been much better organized
and great care has been
taken by the Interior
Ministry not to repeat the
same mistakes. Th.e work
is well coordinated and
self-help has been. introduced.