CHENNAI: In these inflationary times, imagine constructing a 500sqft flat at 6 lakh and without bricks. Researchers in the civil engineering department of IIT-Madras say they have developed such a house using pre-fabricated glass fibre reinforced gypsum (GFRG) panels instead of bricks.Inaugurating a two-storeyed complex, comprising four such eco-friendly flats, on the IIT-M campus on friday, T K A Nair, advisor to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said, the technology will help state housing boards complete projects faster. "With the backing of IIT-M, the technology can be put to use," he said.The four flats "were completed in one month," said officials from IIT-Madras. This technology depends on gypsum, which is easily available and costs only 1,250 per sqft, said IIT-M professors.IIT-M director Bhaskar Ramamurthi said the technology could be used for mass housing projects. "Use of prefabricated light-weight GFRG panels not only implies faster overall construction time but also a safer working environment," he said.Professors Devdas Menon and A Meher Prasad, who led the project, said the overall weight of the structure and consumption of concrete comes down significantly. "Conventional plastering is eliminated," they said.