Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Wednesday said that the Delhi government has ordered the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) to restart the Connaught Place smog tower at full capacity on Thursday. The development comes a day after the Supreme Court directed that the tower be made operational.
The 24-metre-high tower was inaugurated by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in 2021 at a cost of ₹20 crore.
Mr. Rai had earlier claimed that the tower had been shut down on the order of DPCC chairperson Ashwani Kumar. The Environment Minister wrote to the Chief Minister seeking Mr. Kumar’s suspension for “arbitrarily halting” the operation of a large smog tower at Connaught Place.
According to the Delhi government, the giant air purifier, which has 40 large fans, can reduce air pollution by 70%-80% within a 50-metre radius and by 15%-20% up to a radius of 300 metres.
