Demolition of Noida Twin Towers: No fly zone for drones on August 28; mixed feelings among residents – The New Indian Express

By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Drones will not be allowed to fly in the exclusion zone of Supertechs illegal twin towers when they will be demolished on August 28, officials said on Wednesday. They added that drones will be allowed beyond the exclusion zone only on the basis of permission from the police.

The nearly-100 metre tall structures taller than Delhis iconic Qutub Minar in Noidas Sector 93A would be razed to the ground on Sunday. While all residents of two adjoining societies Emerald Court and ATS Village would be evacuated, an exclusion zone has been marked around the twin towers where no person, vehicle or animal would be allowed during the demolition process, theofficials said.

The exclusion zone will include an area of 450 metres in front side of the twin towers overseeing a road and a city park. On the other sides of the towers, the exclusion zone will be till 250 metres, said Gautam Buddh Nagars Deputy Commissioner of Police (Headquarters) RamBadan Singh.

The exclusion zone will be a no fly zone for drones. However, drones could be used beyond the exclusion zone but for that a permission would be required from the local police well in advance, he said.The exclusion zone also includes a patch of Noida-Greater Noida Expressway, where vehicular traffic would remain halted from 2.15 pm to 2.45 pm on August 28, he said.

The measures are being taken as safety precaution, according to officials, who said around 3,700 kilograms of explosives has been rigged into the skeletal structures of the twin towers for implosion.

The demolition of Supertechs twin towers in Noidas Sector 93A comes in pursuance of a Supreme Court order that found the structures to be illegal and built in violation of norms.

People living in residential complexes around Supertech's twin towers here will be relieved that the skyscrapers no longer cast a shadow on their homes.

But as the demolition day approaches, there is a palpable anxiety.

The nearly 100-metre tall towers, which came up illegally in Emerald Court's premises, will become India's tallest structures to be safely demolished by implosion technique in pursuance of a Supreme Court order.

Around 5,000 residents of the neighbouring Emerald Court and ATS Village societies will be the most impacted when the structures go down at 2.30 pm on August 28, leaving behind a whopping 55,000 tonnes of debris.

Emerald Court's Rajesh Rana (63), whose flat in Aster 2 tower is just nine metres from the twin towers, said these days the demolition is the only topic of discussion for them and it has been like this since the last few weeks.

"Of course, there is anxiety among people but we are more happy than worried about the demolition. It's a result of a long struggle for us,"Rana told PTI, expecting the demolition process to be successful.

ATS' residents' group president Atul Chaturvedi, a retired central government bureaucrat, said, "Considering that it's an unprecedented event with not much documentary evidence of such demolitions except for the Maradu complexes in Kerala, there is a fear of the unknown among residents."

According to officials overseeing the evacuation preparations, all residents of Emerald Court and ATS Village in Sector 93A, along with more than 150 pets, will have to vacate their homes by 7 am while the security staff of these societies will also be moved out at latest by 12 pm on Sunday.

Around 2,700 vehicles from both societies will also be removed.

The residents would be allowed to return after 4 pm only after safety clearance from officials.

Uday Bhan Singh Teotia (75), the president of Emerald Court residents' association said, "The adjoining Parsvnath Srishti, Parsvnath Prestige and Eldeco Utopia have offered to provide space in their community clubs to anyone from our societies who want to go there for the demolition period."

While some residents are considering the offer, a large number of them are planning to move to their relatives' homes in Delhi, Noida, Gurugram, and Ghaziabad even as some have planned to go on a vacation to places like Uttarakhand and Rajasthan among others, ATS' Chaturvedi told PTI.

Sabiqa Abbas of Emerald Court said the anxiety among residents is palpable and been part of their daily discussions of late.

"The support of our residents' groups and flow of information regarding the do's and don'ts for the evacuation on August 28 has been good,"she said, standing on her ground-floor apartment's balcony with the soon-to-be-demolished towers in sight.

She and her family members, including her husband, an infant and parents-in-law, will be going to their relatives' place in Noida on August 28.

Meanwhile, nearby private Felix Hospital announced reserving 50 beds on the day of demolition in case of any emergency.

"There is a likelihood of huge dust from the demolition causing health-related issues for the next seven to 90 days among the nearby residents,"Felix Hospital's Dr D K Gupta said.

The hospital's advisory urged residents in nearby areas to wear masks, eyeglasses, avoid going out in the wake of the demolition, use skin moisturisers and consult a doctor in case of irritation in the eyes.

(With PTI Inputs)

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Demolition of Noida Twin Towers: No fly zone for drones on August 28; mixed feelings among residents - The New Indian Express