Dense fog hits Delhi; 40 domestic flights, 36 trains delayed

Amid the ongoing severe cold wave conditions, a thick layer of fog engulfed Delhi and adjoining areas leading to reduced visibility on Tuesday with less than 100 m visibility at 8.30 am.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), “Less than 100 m visibility at 8.30 am in Jammu division’s Jammu, U’khand’s Pantnagar, Punjab’s Patiala, Amritsar and Ludhiana, Haryana’s Bhiwani and Karnal, Delhi’s Palam, Raj’s Ganganagar, UP’s Bareilly, Bahraich, Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Prayagraj & Bihar’s Gaya, Bhagalpur, and Purnea.”

Meanwhile, due to less visibility from Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI) 40 flights were delayed and till 7 am no flight diversions were reported.

People braved through a thick fog in the entire north Indian belt, and a minimum temperature of 6.4°C was reported in Safdarjung while Palam recorded a minimum temperature of 7.5°C, till 8:30 am and at 4:30 am the visibility at Palam was 0 meters.

Moreover, over parts of Punjab, Northwest Rajasthan, Jammu division, Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Tripura a dense fog was observed.

Taking to Twitter IMD tweeted, “Dense/Very Dense Fog layer (in the white patch) extends from Punjab to Bihar across Haryana, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh at 0530 hours IST on 10.01.2023.”

“Visibility (in meters) recorded at 0530 hours IST of 10.01.2023: Bhatinda and Agra – 0 each. Jammu division, Ganganagar, Chandigarh, Ambala, Patiala, Bareilly, Lucknow, Sultanpur, Gorakhpur, and Bhagalpur – 25 each. Hissar, Delhi-Palam, Baharaich, Gaya, Purnea and Kailashahar – 50,” IMD said.

However, 36 trains were running late due to fog on Tuesday.

A passenger said, “I am traveling to Gorakhpur. However, my train is running late by 4-4.5 hours on account of the fog.”

Furthermore, till 12 January a temporary ban has been imposed on Monday by the AAP government on the plying of BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel four-wheelers.