Supertech twin towers demolition: In 9 seconds on May 22 both will be destroyed

Holes will be drilled into the columns, after which around 2,500 kg to 4,000 kg of explosives will be placed in them.

The Supertech twin towers in Noida's Sector 93A will be demolished in nine seconds on May 22, Edifice Engineering, the company handed the assignment said Monday in a joint press conference with Noida authorities. Uttkarsh Mehta, a partner in Edifice Engineering, told news agencies 'the two towers would fall almost simultaneously.'

The distance between the two towers is less than 16 metres, residents had said in their high court plea.

Up to four tonnes of explosives could be used to raze down the illegal Supertech twin towers in Noida and the implosion of the nearly 100-metre tall structures on May 22 would take just nine seconds, officials told PTI. "Holes will be drilled into the columns, after which around 2,500 kg to 4,000 kg of explosives will be placed in them," officials said.

Around 1,500 families living in close vicinity to the towers located in sector 93A would be moved out of their homes for around five hours when the implosion takes place at 2.30 pm on May 22, they said.

After the blast the debris will be cleared over the next three months ending August 22.

“The building will fall inwards in multiple stages, floor by floor. Ten levels will act as primary blast floors and seven as secondary blast floors. The primary blast floors will have explosives in all columns. In the secondary floors, explosives will be in 40 per cent of the columns,” Mehta said, explaining the technical aspects of the process.

"The taller tower will fall a few milliseconds after the smaller one. The columns of the towers will be covered with layers of wire mesh and geotextile fabric to contain the concrete debris when the building implodes," media reports quoted Edifice Engineering as saying.

Demolition work began on February 20, after Supertech paid ₹70 lakh in outstanding fees to Edifice, following which the latter mobilised manpower, material and machines at the site for demolition.

The two towers have a built-up area of around 7.5 lakh square feet. The taller tower is at a height of 103 metres, while the smaller tower is approximately 97 metres tall. The distance between the two towers is less than 16 metres, residents had said in their high court plea.

The Supreme Court ordered the demolition of the twin towers in August last year, after the residents of the Supertech Emerald Court project moved the Allahabad high court, claiming that the buildings were in violation of the National Building Code as the distance between the towers was less than 16 metres.

The high court in 2014 directed the demolition as it found that the two towers - Apex and Ceyane - were illegally constructed in collusion with officials of the Noida authority. This decision was upheld by the Supreme Court last year.

Of the 633 buyers who booked flats in the twin towers, the court directed Supertech to refund the entire amount deposited by homebuyers with 12% interest. About 248 homebuyers took an early refund while 133 took flats in other Supertech projects.

With PTI inputs