Delhi: Dense fog triggers travel chaos, over 150 flights delayed
What's the story
The cold wave over Delhi and the adjoining National Capital Region (NCR) continued on Monday. Minimum temperatures remained in the range of 3-7 degrees Celsius over parts of Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh, and the national capital. A thick layer of fog was observed over several parts of the capital, following which the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an "orange alert" for a cold wave until Tuesday. The inclement weather has triggered flight and train delays, and cancellations as well.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Delhi recorded the coldest morning of the season on Sunday, with the mercury dropping to 3.5 degrees Celsius. Sub-zero temperatures and dense fog over the Indo-Gangetic Plain in the hills have made commuting extremely difficult. This resulted in severe disruption of flight operations at the Delhi airport. Neighboring states also saw delays in train and flight operations.
Details
84 flights canceled, nearly 170 flights delayed at Delhi airport
The visibility at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport was reduced to zero at 3:00am on Monday amid severely foggy conditions, India Today reported. According to the flight tracker website flightradar24, 168 flights were delayed, and 84 flights were canceled at the Delhi airport amid poor visibility. The Delhi airport also released an advisory urging flyers to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information. Additionally, at least 18 trains heading to the national capital have been delayed.
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Visuals of foggy morning in Delhi
#WATCH | Visibility affected in parts of the national capital as a blanket of dense fog covers Delhi.
(Visuals from Shanti Path area, shot at 6:40 am) pic.twitter.com/zoirLgwYot — ANI (@ANI) January 15, 2024
Details
Civil aviation minister releases statement
Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Monday addressed the delay in flights due to the weather conditions in North India. "The authorities were compelled to enforce a shut-down of operations for some time even on CAT III runways (CAT III runways cannot handle Zero-Visibility operations). The decision was taken keeping passenger safety in mind...," the minister posted on X. He also mentioned the steps being taken by the ministry to ensure smooth operations in the future.
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Passenger safety, foremost priority: Scindia
Yesterday, Delhi witnessed unprecedented fog wherein visibility fluctuated for several hours, and at times, dropped to zero between 5 AM to 9 AM.
— Jyotiraditya M. Scindia (@JM_Scindia) January 15, 2024
The authorities, therefore, were compelled to enforce a shut-down of operations for some time even on CAT III runways (CAT III…
What Next?
Delhi schools to reopen on Monday under revised timings
Meanwhile, the extended winter break came to an end in Delhi on Monday as most schools reopened for physical classes. Class timings have been updated as a precaution for the prevailing cold wave and foggy conditions, reports said. As per an order by the education department on Sunday, classes will not start before 9:00am and will not run beyond 5:00pm.
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List of trains delayed amid bad weather
18 trains to Delhi from various parts of the country are running late due to dense fog conditions as on 15th January. pic.twitter.com/eYeAu6kqdk — ANI (@ANI) January 15, 2024
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Delhi's AQI improves to 'very poor' category
Separately, the air quality index (AQI) in the national capital improved to "very poor" on Monday from the "severe" category. This comes after the Centre's Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) invoked an eight-point action plan on Sunday under Stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in Delhi-NCR. Under Stage III, the operation of BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel vehicles and all non-essential construction work in the capital are banned.