On Tuesday, people in Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR) once again woke up with dense smog and fog in the morning. There was zero visibility in some areas of Ghaziabad and Noida. The situation at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport was also very bad in the morning.
Visibility 50 meters at IGI Airport, flights affected
According to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), normal visibility was recorded at just 50 meters at Delhi’s IGI Airport at 8:00 am. Officials said that due to dense fog, more than 200 flights have been delayed so far and at least 10 flights have been cancelled.
Air in the capital in ‘severe’ category
Meanwhile, the air quality of the capital has deteriorated further. According to data from the ‘Sameer’ app of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 414 at 8 am, which falls in the ‘severe’ category.
Light fog, very poor visibility
Along with poisonous air, light to moderate fog prevailed in the city, due to which visibility was very poor in the early morning hours. According to weather forecasts, there is no possibility of immediate relief from pollution at present.
The air will remain bad till Christmas
According to the estimates of Delhi’s ‘Air Quality Early Warning System’, the situation will remain worrying till Christmas. The system said, ‘Delhi’s air quality is likely to remain in the ‘very poor’ category from December 22 to December 24. After this, for the next six days i.e. from December 25, AQI may remain between ‘very poor’ to ‘severe’.
IMD forecast
IMD says that foggy conditions will persist in the coming days. According to the department, the sky will be partially covered with clouds in the next 24 hours. After this, the weather is likely to remain clear for a few days, whereas in the future, light clouds may appear again. The Meteorological Department said that there may be light fog in the morning on 24 and 25 December 2025, while in the following days there is a possibility of moderate fog in the morning.
Dense fog in many states of North India
The Meteorological Department has warned of dense to very dense fog in parts of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. At the same time, there is a possibility of dense fog in some areas of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Chandigarh and Rajasthan.
slight changes in temperature
Only minor changes in temperature have been observed amid pollution and fog. According to officials, an increase of about 1-2 degrees Celsius has been recorded in the maximum temperature in the last 24 hours, while the minimum temperature has remained almost constant. The maximum temperature in Delhi was recorded between 16 to 18 degrees Celsius, while the minimum temperature was between 8 to 11 degrees Celsius.
Travel disrupted in North India
Dense fog has also affected traffic in North India. On Sunday itself, more than 500 flights were delayed and at least 107 flights had to be canceled due to dense fog in the northern plains. Due to fog, 103 trains were running late in Delhi division on Tuesday morning.
Western disturbance became the reason
An official said that there is a possibility of disruption in travel till Tuesday. The reason for this is the active western disturbance, due to which there has been fresh snowfall in parts of Kashmir, Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh. The official said, ‘From Wednesday the effect of western disturbance will weaken, wind speed will increase and the intensity of fog will start reducing.’
