Noida twin towers: Officials say no discernible change in AQI level

The Supertech twin towers in Noida were demolished on Sunday afternoon in a massive explosion using more than 3700 kgs of explosives, capping nine years of a legal battle between the residents and the real estate company.

One of the senior engineers of the Mumbai-based private company, which oversaw the demolition with the help of a foreign company, Chetan Dutta said that it took only 9-10 seconds to demolish the twin towers. The twin towers, situated in sector 93 A, had 32 and 29 floors respectively and they were even taller than the iconic Qutub Minar.

The demolition was carried out at 2.30 pm amid unprecedented security and other preventive measures to contain its impact. Officials said that the demolition was carried out through a ''Water Implosion Technique'' to ensure no or minimal damage to the nearby buildings. Besides the nearby buildings were covered with special cloths to prevent dust penetration.

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Noida Authority CEO Ritu Maheshwari said that there was not much change in the AQI (Air Quality Index) level after the demolition. ''The pre and post-blast AQI levels were almost the same,'' she told reporters after the demolition.

Videos of the demolition, however, showed a huge cloud of dust after the twin towers caved in like a house of cards. Some reports also claimed that the window panes of some nearby houses were damaged owing to the impact of the blast. Maheshwari, however, said that the damage, if any, to the houses nearby was being assessed.

Sources said that the demolition was likely to leave around 80 thousand tonnes of debris and it might take months to remove the same.

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Officials said that more than 37 thousand kilograms of explosives were used to demolish the twin towers. Over seven thousand holes had been made in the towers for this purpose.

Uttar Pradesh's additional chief secretary (home) Avanish Kumar Awasthi said here that all preventive measures had been taken before triggering the blast and that the situation was being assessed by the NOIDA authorities. Sources said that the residents of the nearby societies, who had been moved out before the demolition, might be allowed to return later in the evening.

Over 100 water tankers had been pressed into service to sprinkle water to prevent the dust from spreading. Traffic on the Noida Expressway was also halted for half an hour between 2.15 and 2.45 pm, sources said.

The twin towers were demolished on the orders of the supreme court last year. The residents of the Supertech Emerald society had moved the court challenging the construction of the twin towers on a piece of land which had been earmarked for a garden. The case was filed in 2012 and the apex court ordered the demolition in August last year.