A dense blanket of fog enveloped Delhi and its neighbouring regions on Friday as North India remained gripped by a severe cold wave. The blinding fog disrupted flight and train services and significantly slowed road traffic, with visibility dropping to zero in several areas. Additionally, the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital deteriorated to the severe category, recording a level of 409.
The Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi recorded zero visibility on Friday, severely disrupting flight operations on a large scale. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for the city in view of dense fog.
At IGI Airport, over 210 departure flights were delayed, and five have been cancelled. Among the arrivals, 72 flights were delayed, and one has been cancelled. At Kolkata Airport, 12 flights--6 departing and 6 arriving--have been delayed, according to the air traffic monitoring platform, Flightradar.
The weather department warned that the conditions "may affect airports, highways and railway routes and difficult driving conditions with slower journey times".
The Delhi Airport's advisory said, "Due to dense fog, there has been an impact on flight departures. However, flights which are CAT III compliant (capable of low visibility operation) are able to land and depart from Delhi airport". Similar conditions persisted at several other airports in North India, including Agra, Chandigarh, Ranchi, Lucknow, and Amritsar, among others.
A dense fog blinded the roads, a multi-vehicle collision in Uttar Pradesh left several people injured. At least six vehicles were involved in the pile-up on the Delhi-Lucknow Highway, temporarily blocking the road, police said.
Twenty six train services were delayed, with some running 7-8 hours behind schedule. The affected services include several long-distance trains, such as the Balurghat-Bhatinda Farakka Express, Hyderabad-New Delhi Telangana Express, Lucknow Mail, New Delhi Humsafar Express, Nanded-Shri Ganganagar Superfast, and UP Sampark Kranti, among others.
Satellite images at 6 am today showed the entire Indo-Gangetic Plain, from Lahore to Prayagraj, covered in a thick layer of fog.
The air quality in the national capital dropped to the 'severe' category. According to the Central Pollution Control Board, the AQI was recorded at 409 in Delhi today at 7 am. On Thursday, at the same time, it was 299. The Centre's panel on Delhi-NCR's air quality re-implemented Stage 3 curbs under the Graded Response Action Plan amid the sharp rise in air pollution levels.
The IMD has also predicted a rainy week ahead for many parts of North India, including Delhi-NCR, as weather patterns in India are expected to shift significantly over the next two weeks. Thunderstorms and isolated hailstorms have been forecast for several areas.
The winter chill intensified across most parts of North India as night temperatures dipped significantly. In Kashmir, temperatures dropped below zero degrees, while in parts of Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh, they inched closer to the freezing point.
In Himachal Pradesh, the weather department issued a yellow warning for a cold wave, ground frost, and dense fog in some areas of five districts: Una, Bilaspur, Hamirpur, Kangra, and Mandi. Cold wave conditions have also been predicted for Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
Source: India Today