Thick fog blankets Delhi-NCR
A thick blanket of fog blinded Delhi and its adjoining NCR cities on Sunday, reducing visibility to zero amid cold wave conditions, leading to the delay of several flights and trains.
The national Capital on Sunday recorded a maximum temperature of 22.7 degrees Celsius, 3.1 notches above the seasonal average, with partly cloudy conditions throughout the day after dense fog enveloped most parts of the city during the early hours.
Meanwhile, the Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 440, in the ‘severe’ category, at 4 pm, after it was recorded at 444 during the morning, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed. The city’s AQI is expected to be in the ‘very poor’ range from Monday till January 21 due to a lower ventilation index of 6000 units, with an average wind speed of 10 kmph — not favourable for the dispersion of pollutants.
The Decision Support System assessment indicates that vehicular emissions contributed around 12.47 per cent to overall pollution levels, while industrial emissions from peripheral areas accounted for 7.8 per cent. Biomass contributed around 1.2 per cent, construction activities 1.5 per cent, and residential emissions 3.3 per cent. The minimum temperature settled at 5.3 degrees Celsius, 2.3 notches below normal, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said. Dense fog prevailed in most parts of the city during morning hours, with the IMD issuing a yellow alert.
Safdarjung recorded a maximum temperature of 22.7 degrees Celsius, Palam 22 degrees Celsius, Lodhi Road 23.1 degrees Celsius, the Ridge 21.7 degrees Celsius, and Ayanagar 22.2 degrees Celsius, the IMD data showed. A minimum temperature of 5.3 degrees Celsius was logged at Safdarjung, 8 degrees Celsius at Palam, 6.8 degrees Celsius at Lodhi Road, 7.2 degrees Celsius at the Ridge, and 7 degrees Celsius at Ayanagar. The relative humidity stood at 73 per cent at 5.30 pm after it was recorded at 100 per cent at 8.30 am.
Zero visibility was reported at Safdarjung, while it was 100 metres in Palam, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said. The dense fog prompted several airlines, including Air India and IndiGo, to issue advisories, warning passengers to anticipate delays and to check their flight status.
