Dense fog disrupted road, air, and train traffic, prompting the cancellation of 148 flights on Wednesday, even as Delhi’s air quality remained very poor and was expected to deteriorate to the “severe” category. The mercury plunged to 6.4°C, which is around normal, compared to 9.4°C the day before.
The mercury plunged to 6.4°C, which is around normal, compared to 9.4°C the day before. (HT PHOTO)
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The visibility dipped to 50 metres at Palam and remained in this range for close to four hours. “At Delhi, visibility was 50 metres at Palam between 4am and 8am,” said an official. This disrupted air traffic at the Delhi airport, which included two diversions.
Over 550 flights were delayed at the Delhi airport on Tuesday. Airport officials said 118 flights were cancelled and 16 were diverted due to adverse weather conditions. On Wednesday, over 50 trains were running late under the Delhi division of Northern Railways.
An average air quality index (AQI) of 384 (very poor) was recorded at 8am, marginally lower 388 (very poor) at 4 pm on Tuesday.
The Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi said the air quality was likely to be in the “severe” category until January 1 before improving marginally to “very poor” a day later. “The outlook for the subsequent six days from January 3 indicates air quality is likely to remain in the ‘very poor’ category,” it said. There have been five severe air days in December and eight overall this year.
Jasjeev Gandhiok is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times, where he covers environment, climate change, the clean energy transition and wildlife at the National Bureau. Gandhiok has over a decade of experience in journalism and is based in Delhi. He has reported extensively on Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). This includes the region's air pollution woes, a polluted Yamuna and on urban wildlife still thriving in the region. He joined HT in October 2021. Prior to that, he had five-year stint at The Times of India in Delhi, where he also covered Delhi, with a focus on environment and wildlife. Gandhiok has covered some recent events around the Capital too, ranging from the farmers' protests, the northeast Delhi riots and the CAA-NRC protests, reporting from the ground on all of these. He also travels across the country to report on how environment and climate change impact everyday life, while also writing on endangered species. His reports in 2019 on toxic leachate from Delhi's landfills led to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) taking suo motu cognisance and ultimately asking the state government to start bio-mining to flatten and remove all three landfills in the capital. He also closely tracks the implementation of government policies on climate, renewable energy and environmental protection. His focus remains on impactful, public-interest journalism which explains how environmental decisions affect people's everyday lives.
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Home/India News/Delhi’s air quality remains ‘very poor’; 148 flights cancelled on New Year’s Eve
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