Industrialists give thumbs up to idea of air purification tower in Surat

Surat: Rising pollution level in Surat , a leading centre for diamonds and textiles in the country, has been a cause of concern for many , prompting some environment experts to seriously think of tackling the problem. They are thinking of building an air purification tower in the city like in Xian in Shaanxi province of China, which has reportedly brought in improvement in air quality in its vicinity.

Clean Environment Research Centre (CERC) held a workshop for industry representatives from Ahmedabad, Ankleshwar , Vapi and Surat in Pandesara industrial area on Friday.

The workshop at South Gujarat Textile Processers’ Association (SGTPA) hall was addressed by Dr Mukesh Khare, Dr A K Nem and Harsh Kota, faculty members of IIT Delhi. The industry representatives were provided details of rising air pollution and new technologies available to control it. They subsequently supported the idea of an air purification tower in the city.

“It was first of its kind initiative in India where we introduced this project to industries and received good support. The industries have shown interest in setting up an air purification tower. We are hopeful of getting support from the government as well,” said R A Christian, professor at Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology (SVNIT).

“Dr Khare and his team visited the air purification tower in Xian and studied its technology. This technology is very effective in separating pollutants from air,” Christian added.

SGTPA president Jitu Vakharia said, “The industry representatives were given information about the air purification tower technology and that the scientists were willing to set up one in our region. It is a good initiative but we need a clear government policy on this. Besides the industry, other stakeholders can build it provided we have a well designed policy on it.”

CERC is a research centre developed by SVNIT in association with local industries. It carries out research, assessment and analysis projects for the industries and government organizations.