New Delhi: Supertech’s twin towers in Noida, Uttar Pradesh – both taller than Delhi’s iconic Qutab Minar – will be demolished on Sunday (28 August) around 2:30 pm. The towers are expected to be brought down in less than 15 seconds by waterfall implosion technique.
Notably, Supertech’s illegal twin towers in Noida’s Sector 93A will be the tallest structure yet in India to be demolished.
Meanwhile, the evacuation of around 5,000 residents in the neighbouring societies – Emerald Court and ATS Village – has been completed by 7 am today. Most of the residents have already moved out, many of them last evening itself, police officials said.
Why are Noida’s Supertech twin towers being demolished?
Considered to be India’s tallest building, Noida twin towers are being demolished following a directive from the Supreme Court.
The demolition of the twin towers in Noida will put an end to the decade long battle between the builder group – Supertech and the residents around the twin towers.
The twin towers by Supertech in Noida are being demolished because of serious violations of building codes.
In 2004, the Supertech Emerald Court housing society was proposed to be built in Noida’s Sector 93A. In the subsequent year, the Noida authority sanctioned the building plan that showed 14 towers and nine floors.
However, the plan was revised later and in 2012, the Noida authority reviewed the new plan after which the height of the twin towers was fixed at 40 floors.
It was after this, the Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA) of the society moved to Allahabad High Court calling the construction illegal. In 2014, the High Court directed the authority to demolish the twin towers within four months from the date the order was filed. Also, the builder group was asked to bring down the towers (at at its own expense.
The builder was also directed to refund flat buyers’ payments with an interest rate of 14 per cent.
In August 2021, the Supreme Court upheld the Allahabad High Court’s order and ordered the demolition. It also noted that the build of the twin towers violated the construction norms.
The apex court affirmed on 28 August as the date of destruction of Supertech’s twin towers, with a “bandwidth of seven days” between 29 August and 4 September to account for any delays that may arise due to technical issues or weather circumstances.
The nearly 100-metre tall towers are set to be safely demolished at 2.30 pm today.
How will the Supertech’s twin towers be demolished?
The twin towers in Noida have been rigged with over 3,700 kg of explosives. Notably, explosives have been fitted into nearly 7,000 holes in the pillars. Also, 20,000 circuits have been set. When triggered around 2:30 pm today, these will crash the pillars in a manner that the towers fall straight down and this process is called the “waterfall technique”.
Since the explosion to bring down the twin towers will be severe, it is expected to trigger vibrations in a 30-metre radius for a few seconds. According to officials, the magnitude of these vibrations may be about 30 mm per second which is similar to an earthquake measuring 0.4 on the Richter scale.
Officials said that structures in Noida are built to withstand earthquakes measuring up to 6.
After the demolition, it will take about 12 minutes (depending on the wind speed) for the dust to settle. Nearly, 55,000 tonnes of debris will be generated and it is being said that it may take around three months to clear it. The debris will be dumped at designated zones.
Who will be demolishing Supertech’s Twin Towers?
Mumbai-based company Edifice Engineering has been tasked with demolishing Supertech’s Twin Towers in Noida. It is working closely with the Central Building Research Institute and the Noida authorities to bring the towers down.
The demolition process will take place under a Rs 100 crore insurance policy. The premium and other costs have to be borne by Supertech. According to reports, the demolition project may cost upwards of Rs 20 crore, the loss of the towers – skeletal as they were – is estimated at more than Rs 50 crore.
With inputs from agencies
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