27 Dec 2023
Delhi faced widespread travel disruptions on Wednesday due to the season’s most severe fog, resulting in delays for over 25 trains and around 50 flights. The dense fog reduced visibility to just 50 meters in Safdarjung and Palam, raising concerns about a potential deterioration in air quality later in the day.
Northern Railways reported delays of more than an hour for 25 trains, including significant delays of over five hours for the Puri-New Delhi Purushottam Express and the Howrah-New Delhi Poorvah Express. The precautionary measure of running trains at reduced speeds during dense fog was highlighted to prevent mishaps.
Surprisingly, no flight diversions occurred until 9 am, but around 50 flights experienced delays exceeding 15 minutes, classified as delayed flights. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) noted that the fog on Wednesday was the most substantial, intensifying across northern India. The fog developed during the night and morning hours, lasting longer compared to Tuesday, the official said. Visibility dropped to 50 meters in Amritsar by 6 pm on Tuesday and further decreased to the same level in Lucknow and Agra by 11:30 pm. In Delhi, both Safdarjung and Palam reported 50-meter visibility, with Palam experiencing a drop to 150 meters at 4:30 am and further down to 50 meters by 7 am on Wednesday.
The challenging weather conditions continued to disrupt transportation and raised concerns about the well-being of commuters and the impact on air quality.