Diners at a restaurant in eastern China have been charged with "an air cleaning fee" on top of their food bill. This is said to cover the cost of purifying the air inside the restaurant.

State news agency Xinhua reports that the restaurant in Zhangjiagang City in Jiangsu Province is charging each customer one Yuan to cover the expense of cleaning the air inside the restaurant. Cities in China have been enveloped in thick smog since last week, prompting the government to raise a red alert that was in effect for three days. In areas where smog was at its worst, one can barely see beyond 100 meters.

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Following this, the restaurant owner bought an air filtration system to improve the dining experience, but has passed on the cost to its customers without prior advice. Many patrons responded angrily to the move.

The local government reportedly stopped the practice after receiving complaints from customers, and told the restaurant owners that such added cost was illegal.

The city officials reasoned that it was not the diners' choice to breathe in filtered air so they should not be charged extra for it. The fee has since been dropped.

Meanwhile, social media was not all that averse to the restaurant's move. South China Morning Post said some would be glad to pay a fee for cleaner air.

On Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter, one user wrote: "I am willing to give an extra yuan [for purifying the air]."

Yet another netizen said: "They could have added the extra one yuan to the price of the dishes, but they didn't ... there is nothing wrong with charging this extra fee. The kind of dining environment decides the kind of pricing."

Chinese authorities have taken drastic measures that resulted to brief blue skies during the weekend, but air quality still leaves much to be desired.

TagsDiners at a restaurant in eastern China, Charged with clean air, Extra Yuan for Cleaner Air, a restaurant in Zhangjiagang City in Jiangsu Province, red alert over smog in beijing, Beijing Air Pollution