Noida`s first smog tower becomes operational, will Delhi`s air quality improve now?

NOIDA: As the National Capital Region continues to gasp for clean air, the first anti-smog tower along the Delhi-Noida-Direct (DND) Flyway near Film City in Noida has become operational now, raising hopes that it will improve the air quality in Delhi and surrounding areas.

The 20-meter-tall anti-smog tower, built at a cost of about Rs 3 crore, will cover an area of one square kilometre and help mitigate air pollution during the winter season.

This smog tower was inaugurated by Mahendra Nath Pandey, Union Minister for Heavy Industries on Wednesday in the presence of Union Minister for State for power and heavy industries Krishan Pal Gurjar, BJP MP Dr Mahesh Sharma, Noida MLA Pankaj Singh and many others Noida Authority officials.

The smog tower has been built by the joint efforts of Bhartiya Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL) and the Noida Authority. According to R Acharya, Executive Director of Research and Development at BHEL, the 20 meters high smog tower will work at a filtration rate of 80,000 cubic meters per hour (the capacity of the tower to clean air per cubic metre). 

The smog tower is expected to clean the air by removing pollutants in Noida's 15, 15A, 16, 16A (Film City), 17 and 19 sectors. The smog tower is equipped with a machine that is expected to remove nearly 80% of the particulate matter i.e. PM2.5 and PM10 and reduce the pollution levels in the area.

The smog tower will be beneficial for thousands of commuters who use the DND Flyway and the Delhi-Noida Expressway link road for their daily commute. It may be noted that the air quality in the national capital remained in the very poor category with the air quality index (AQI) clocking the value of 344 at 8 am on Thursday.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, no major improvement is likely till Sunday. Though the air quality remained in the very poor category, the AQI improved marginally at 344 on Thursday from its previous day's index value of 375.

According to the CPCB's Sameer App, Faridabad (354), Ghaziabad (364), Greater Noida (324), Gurugram (325) and Noida (333) also recorded their air quality in the very poor category at 8 am on Thursday.

An AQI between zero and 50 is considered good, 51 and 100 satisfactory, 101 and 200 moderate, 201 and 300 poor, 301 and 400 very poor, and 401 and 500 severe. The minimum temperature of the national capital was recorded at 10.5 degrees Celsius, two notches below the season's average, India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.