Delhi will dilute air pollutants through WAYU

To filter particulate matter and dilute air pollutants in the national capital, Union Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday inaugurated air pollution control device WAYU (Wind Augmentation Purifying Unit) here.

Speaking at the inauguration the minister said: "The device can purify the air in an area of the 500-meter square. Around 54 more such devices are to be installed by October 15 in Delhi."

According to the ministry, the device installed at Income Tax Office (ITO) intersection and Mukarba Chowk, generates wind in order to dilute the air pollutants and removes the active pollutants like carbon (charcoal) with the help of one fan and filter.

WAYU is developed by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research - National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-NEERI) and funded by Department of Science and Technology, the ministry said.

The device equipped with two ultraviolet lamps and half a kilogram of activated carbon coated with special chemical Titanium Dioxide also removes poisonous gases such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and carbon monoxide, it added.

The minister said it consumes only half a unit of electricity for 10 hours of running and has a maintenance cost of only Rs 1,500 per month.

Ministry of science and technology was in the process of developing a bigger version to purify 10,000-meter square area which can be deployed in bus shelters, Vardhan added.