Alpine air at work? Delhi eyes novel ways to battle smog

NEW DELHI: Political apathy over poisonous smog choking has led many Delhiites such as businessman Kamal Meattle to take matters into their own hands and how. Pumping air as fresh as from the Swiss Alps into his office building.

From the outside, the Paharpur Business Centre looks just like any modern office block. But inside, it is a virtual jungle where rooms and corridors are lined with over 7,000 potted plants and creepers.

The business centre’s greenhouse terrace, with artificial grass and green walls, houses an “air washing” system that moves polluted air through a series of cleaning filters.

It is then pushed through the greenhouse where the plants remove the bacteria, fungus, carbon dioxide and other toxins, before the air-conditioning pumps it into the office building.

“I wanted a solution for myself and I didn’t want to leave Delhi,” Meattle, 73,  said.

His centre, whose tenants include Amazon, Samsung and Microsoft is now rated as Delhi’s healthiest building by the government.

“You are right now siting in an air tank,” he said, referring to the greenhouse where PM2.5 — the most harmful particulate in the air — registered nearly zero compared with 415 outside, as per Paharpur’s monitoring system.

Chakr Innovations, started IIT graduates has capitalised on the smoke-belching machines that can be heard across Delhi. Chakr Shield, developed by them, is fitted to generators that convert carbon and fine particles, including the harmful PM0.3 and PM2.5 specks, into liquified soot through chemical and heat-exchanging processes, co-founder A. Duhar said.