NEW DELHI: As the illegally built Supertech twin towers came crashing down in Noida Sector 93 A at 2:30 pm on Sunday, everyone seemed ready for the moment but not the birds in the area.
A PTI video showed a flock of birds, including crows and pigeons, taking flight as soon as 3,700 kilos of explosives bored into the pillars and walls of the two towers went off, with clouds of dust chasing them.
Conservationists said some birds may have even died in the demolition.
Sanjay Mahapatra, the founder of House of Stray Animals, said the NGO had requested authorities to conduct a dummy blast or false firing before the final implosion to save a large number of birds in the area.
"Several birds might have died. We have been working to save the animals in the area since August 8. We cannot cage the birds and hence had made the request for a false firing. We are already at the demolition site and checking the area thoroughly. We can only hope that no voiceless life has been lost," he said.
Reacting to the video, several Twitter users expressed concern over the plight of the birds.
"I am looking at the birds who would have got suffocated in the dust clouds. I am sure no one thought about scaring them away before demolition," a Twitter user said.
Another Twitter user, Fahad, said authorities could have burst firecrackers to scare away the birds.
Divakar Mishra said action should be taken against those who tamper with nature.
"What was the fault of these birds," he asked.
"How scary (it must have been) for everyone including the birds," another user said.
A series of controlled explosions reduced the 100-metre tall Supertech twin towers to a massive pile of rubble.
As the buildings went down, a cloud of dust rose to obscure their very final moments.
Apex (32 storeys) and Ceyane (29 storeys) were gone in seconds in the carefully choreographed and meticulously executed demolition -- the biggest such exercise in the country so far.
About 5,000 people from the adjoining Emerald Court and ATS Village societies had left their homes hours before the demolition.
Nearly 3,000 vehicles and about 200 pets were also taken out of harm's way for the next several hours.
It took 12 seconds to raze Supertech twin towers in Noida to the ground on Sunday, said Jet Demolitions Managing Director Joe Brinkmann.
Edifice Engineering hired by the developer for the task had collaborated with South Africa's Jet Demolitions for the job.
A series of controlled explosions reduced the illegally built twin towers to a massive pile of rubble.
Apex (32 storeys) and Ceyane (29 storeys) were gone in seconds, in the carefully choreographed and meticulously executed demolition -- the biggest such exercise in the country so far.
Local people watched from vantage points picked days in advance.
CHECK OUT VISUALS OF THE DEMOLITION HERE
Many others had travelled to Noida for what could be a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle, as 3,700 kilos of explosives bored into the pillars and walls of the two residential buildings went off in quick succession.
The apex court had pointed at the "collusion" between the builders and Noida Authority officials who let Supertech Ltd construct in the area where no buildings were to come up according to the original plans.
Just after 2.30 pm, the floors of the twin towers collapsed onto each other in a stack, which sat amid other complexes in sector 93A in Noida, an Uttar Pradesh city that adjoins New Delhi.
The peak level of noise during the twin tower demolition on Sunday was recorded at 101.2 decibels in close vicinity, according to official figures.
The Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) had installed six machines to measure the ambient noise and the figures of the three places closest to the twin towers were taken for this measurement, officials said.
The three machines were installed at Parsvnath Prestige, Barat Ghar and the City Park, all around 300-500 metres from the blast site.
The ambient noise before the demolition was recorded 49.5 decibels at Parsvnath Prestige, 65.9 decibels at Barat Ghar and 56.6 at the City Park, according to the data.
During the demolition, the noise was recorded at 84.9 decibels at Parsvnath Prestige, 101.2 decibels at Barat Ghar and 89.8 at the City Park, the data showed.
The noise level after the demolition was recorded at 60.8 decibels at Parsvnath Prestige, 63.1 decibels at Barat Ghar and 59.2 at the City Park, according to the data.
"The noise level peaked at 101.2 decibels during the demolition at the City Park, which is located in front of the now-demolished twin towers," Regional Officer UPPCB Praveen Kumar told PTI.
He said the firms which were engaged for the demolition of the twin towers had also placed some monitoring devices much closer to the site but their findings would take time to come.
No major change was recorded in the air quality in areas adjoining Noida's Sector 93 A after the demolition of the nearly 100-metre-tall Supertech twin towers on Sunday that generated an estimated 80,000 tonnes of debris and sent huge clouds of dust billowing in the air.
The Noida Authority said it closely monitored the air quality index (AQI) and PM10 levels before and after the demolition through 20 monitoring stations.
"The data clearly shows that even after the demolition, the AQI and PM 10 Levels have been within acceptable limits," it said in a tweet.
The AQI in sectors 91, 125, 62, 1 and 116 stood at 57, 122, 108, 119 and 121, respectively, at 2 pm.
After the demolition, the AQI in sectors 91, 125, 62, 1 and 116 stood at 57, 122, 109, 120 and 123, respectively at 3 pm.
At 8 pm, the AQI rose marginally to 67 in Sector 91, 127 in Sector 125, 114 in Sector 62, 129 in Sector 1, and 131 in Sector 116, Central Pollution Control Board data showed.
As the Supertech twin towers were razed to the ground, doctors said people living in nearby areas, especially those suffering from respiratory diseases, should take extra care and avoid the area for a few days if possible.
The doctors said most dust particles have a diameter of 5 microns or less and can remain suspended in the air for a few days in the absence of favourable meteorological conditions like strong winds and rain.
Massive dust pollution can lead to itching in the eyes, nose and skin; coughing; sneezing; breathing difficulty; lung infection; nasal congestion; asthmatic attacks and aggravate heart problems, they said.