NEW DELHI: Hoping to give respite to Delhiites from toxic air in winters, the Delhi government will operationalise the country’s first smog tower soon. Located in Central Delhi’s Connaught Place, the smog tower was supposed to be inaugurated on Independence Day, but got delayed and will now be launched by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on August 23, informed environment Gopal Rai on Thursday.
Built at a cost of Rs 20 crore, it is estimated to clean 1,000 cubic metres of air every second, helping reduce PM 2.5 and PM 10 levels in the locality. The height of this tower will be around 25 metres. The Delhi Pollution Control Committee, the nodal authority for the smog tower, is collaborating with IIT-Mumbai, National Building Construction Corporation and Tata group to jointly build it.
Rai, who was on a site visit to inspect the last-minute progress of work, said that the performance and impact of the smog tower will be assessed by experts who will submit a report to the government. If its performance is impressive, the Delhi government will establish similar towers throughout the national capital, he added.
“The efficiency and impact of this smog tower will be very crucial for Delhi region. I am confident that the smog-tower will yield positive results for us. The Kejriwal government is committed towards reducing the pollution levels in Delhi,” said the environment minister, adding that the tower will work with full force after the monsoon season.
According to the AAP government, only China has smog towers but the technology of this tower is different. The towers of China take the polluted air from the bottom and emit the purified air from the top. But this tower works in the opposite direction. It has around 40 wings which will emit the purified air at 10 meters above the ground. The effect of this purified air will be in a one square km-area.