The heavy fog even led to the temporary suspension of flight operations at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, where visibility fell to zero metres
The heavy fog even led to the temporary suspension of flight operations at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, where visibility fell to zero metres
India’s capital city woke up to the coldest morning of the season on Friday (Jan 12), with the temperature in Delhi dipping to a chilling 3.9 degrees Celsius. A thick blanket of fog also engulfed the National Capital Region (NCR), affecting air, rail and road traffic. The heavy fog even led to the temporary suspension of flight operations at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, where visibility fell to zero metres.
India Meteorological Department (IMD) said the IGI Airport was witnessing zero visibility due to “very dense fog conditions”. Although flight operations remained normal, the airport authorities urged travellers to check with their concerned airline about the status of their flight.
“Low Visibility Procedures are in progress at Delhi Airport. All flight operations are presently normal. Passengers are requested to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information,” authorities said.
To assist flight operations in the persistent conditions of zero visibility, the CAT III or Category III –an instrument landing system (ILS) that allows aircraft to land and take off in low visibility conditions—was put in place at the airport.
“While landing and takeoffs continue at Delhi Airport, flights that are not CAT III compliant may get affected. Passengers are requested to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information. Any inconvenience caused is deeply regretted,” the authorities added.
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Visibility at the Palam Airport, meanwhile, was also reported at zero by the IMD at 7:30 am IST.
Delhi’s Safdarjung Airport (VIDD) also reported 200 metre visibility in dense fog conditions.
The Free Press Journal reported that as many as 39 passenger trains to Delhi were running behind their schedule due to foggy conditions. According to railway officials, Ajmer-Katra Pooja Express, Katihar-Amritsar Express, and Khajarao-Kurukshetra Express trains were running late by six hours.
Long-distance trains including Bhubneshwar-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, Puri-New Delhi Purushottam Express, Amritsar-Nanded Express, Azamgarh-Delhi Junction Kaifiyat Express, Kamakhya-Delhi Junction Brahmputra Mail and Seoni-Ferozpur Express are also running behind their schedule and are expected to arrive late by four hours.
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Similarly, Jammutawi-Ajmer Pooja Express and Kamakhya-Delhi Junction Brahmputra Mail are also delayed by around five hours while 10 others, including Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat Express, Banglore-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, Lucknow-New Delhi Tejas, Prayagraj-New Delhi Express, Chennai-New Delhi Express and Manikpur-Nizamuddin Express are running late by up to two hours.
Travellers are urged to check with the Indian Railways website and app to get updates status of their respective trains.
(With inputs from agencies)
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