Demolition of ‘weak’ driveway adjacent to twin towers begins
NOIDA: Edifice Engineering, the company that will raze the Supertech twin towers Apex and Ceyane on May 22, started demolishing the driveway of neighbouring Supertech Emerald Court in Noida’s Sector 93 on Thursday. The society’s driveway is an eight-metre wide path that separates the Supertech twin towers from three towers of Emerald Court—aster 2, Aster 3 and Aspire.
Edifice Engineering had earlier informed the Supreme Court that the driveway is structurally weak to bear the pressure of the blast and will need to be demolished so that the safety of neighbouring buildings can be ensured.
“We have taken control of the driveway now and have started demolishing it till the basement level. Once we start with the first few pillars, we will know how much time this will take. Removing the driveway was the safest option we had as it was already structurally weak and we could see exposed reinforcement during our initial visits itself,” said Uttkarsh Mehta, partner, Edifice Engineering. He added that the basement under the driveway will be used as a buffer to protect the neighbouring buildings from flying debris. “Empty containers will be anchored to the ground and stacked upto three floors as an additional safety layer to protect the Emerald Court buildings from flying debris. Most of the debris will fall within the twin tower premises and the basement under the driveway,” said Mehta.
The issue was discussed with the Noida authority, Supertech and the residents’ welfare association before the driveway was removed. While Edifice Engineering will demolish the structure, Supertech will reconstruct it. The approval for demolishing the driveway was given by the Emerald Court Apartment Owners’ Association on the condition that it will be reconstructed by Supertech and that the demolition company will provide an undertaking to ensure safety.
UBS Teotia, president of Emerald Court Apartment Owners’ Association said that the demolition company will take about three months to clear the debris while Supertech will ready it by October 15.
Meanwhile, the AOA has worked out an interim traffic management plan within the society.
“All vehicles of residents will enter and exit the basement from gate number 3 for the next few months,” said Teotia.
The main road outside the twin towers was also cordoned off for traffic on Thursday. According to officials, the road is likely to remain blocked till the test blast scheduled for April 10.