Noida twin towers demolition at 2.30 pm today; evacuation underway

Preparations are in the final stages for the safe demolition of Supertech’s twin towers in Noida at 2.30 pm on Sunday in what is expected to be a breathtaking spectacle of engineering to raze to the ground the nearly 100-metre-tall structures borne out of corruption.

The towers – both taller than Delhi’s iconic Qutub Minar – will be brought down in less than 15 seconds by waterfall implosion technique. They will be the tallest structures yet in India to be demolished, officials said.

There was excitement and anticipation as several people, including families and children, gathered at the site on the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday, clicking selfies and taking videos of the two towers

“All arrangements have been made and preparations done for the safe demolition of the twin towers as per schedule at 2.30 pm tomorrow,” Noida Authority CEO Ritu Maheshwari told PTI.

The two towers, Apex (32 storeys) and Ceyane (29 storeys), were built in violation of multiple regulations.

At least 3,700 kg of explosives will be used to demolish the buildings. These explosives have already been place in around 7,000 cavities in the pillars of the buildings. The collapse will last nine seconds while the dust will take at least 12 minutes to settle.

An estimated 55,000 tonnes of debris is expected to be generated from the demolition and it may take at least three months to clear the place of it.

Morning visuals showed cranes arriving at the spot even as police vacated residents from the premises and NGO volunteers rescued stray animals from the site.

Around 560 police personnel, 100 personnel from the reserve forces, four quick response teams and an NDRF team are on the standby to deal with any untoward situation.

Reports said around 7,000 residents in the locality have been asked to move out of their homes ahead of the demolition and 2,500 vehicles have been parked outside the area. The administration has said that gas and power supply will be restored in the nearby buildings by 4 pm while residents will be allowed to come back home by 5.30 pm.

The nearby buildings, some as close as 8 metres to the twin towers, have been covered with a special cloth to protect them from dust and debris from the demolition.

Traffic on the Greater Noida Expressway will also be halted for half an hour, between 2.15 pm and 2.45 pm.

(With inputs from agencies)