Travel disrupted as fog engulfs parts of north India

Dense fog engulfed parts of North India, significantly reducing visibility and disrupting travel plans.

At Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, visibility dropped to zero, leading to delays and cancellations.

A total of 202 flights were delayed, while several airlines, including SpiceJet, IndiGo, and Air India, cancelled services on certain routes.
FlightRadar24 reported an average delay of six minutes for arrivals and 47 minutes for departures.

SpiceJet confirmed disruptions on routes to Amritsar and Guwahati due to adverse weather.

IndiGo issued a travel advisory highlighting affected routes, including Delhi, Lucknow, Bengaluru, and Guwahati. Airlines advised passengers to check schedules frequently, warning of potential cancellations if visibility remains low.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported Delhi’s maximum temperature at 16°C, three degrees below normal, and a minimum of 7.6°C over the past 24 hours.

Friday marked the fifth consecutive cold day for the city, with temperatures recorded at 9.6°C in the morning.

People gather around a fire on the banks of Sangam on a cold foggy morning ahead of the Maha Kumbh Mela festival in Prayagraj. AFP

Visibility at Palam Airport dropped to 0 metres at 8am, while Safdarjung Airport reported just 50 metres.

Rail operations were also heavily impacted, with at least 24 trains departing from Delhi delayed.

Meanwhile, air quality in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR) remains a concern.

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 309 at Lodhi Road, classified as “Very Poor.”

Bone-chilling cold continued across Kashmir on Friday as dense fog made pedestrian and traffic movement difficult in the morning in J&K’s Srinagar city.

Srinagar city had minus 2.2°C and Gulmarg and Pahalgam both had minus 4.5°C as the minimum temperature.

Kashmiri labourers warm their hands standing near a bonfire on a cold and foggy morning in the outskirts of Srinagar. AP

Almost all water bodies, including lakes, springs, streams and wells, have frozen partially in the Valley.

Extremely slippery road conditions have caused an increase in the number of patients reporting daily at Srinagar’s Bone & Joint Hospital with fractures.

Cold wave gripped Telangana with minimum temperature dropping to single digits in 15 and out of state’s 30 districts on Friday, officials said.

Indo-Asian News Service