NEW DELHI: Cold day conditions, dense fog and stagnant winds continued to grip Delhi on Sunday, sharply reducing visibility across the city and worsening air quality as winter weather tightened its hold on the capital.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said moderate to dense fog prevailed during the morning hours at several places, with visibility dropping to as low as 300 metres at Palam and around 200 metres at Safdarjung at different points, before improving gradually later in the day.
According to the IMD’s latest forecast, fog conditions are likely to persist over the next few days, with moderate fog expected at many places and dense fog at isolated locations during morning hours on Monday. Minimum temperatures are likely to remain above normal for the next 48 hours before dipping by 2–3 degrees Celsius thereafter, while maximum temperatures are expected to stay below normal, the weather office said.
The adverse weather coincided with severe air pollution levels across the city.
Delhi’s average air quality index (AQI) over the past week remained firmly in the “severe” to “very poor” range, peaking at 427 on December 15 and staying above 330 on all days since.
On Sunday, the city recorded an average AQI of 377, reflecting little relief despite marginal day-to-day fluctuations.
Several industrial and traffic-heavy pockets reported hazardous pollution levels. Bawana recorded the highest AQI at 421, followed by Wazirpur at 419, Anand Vihar at 416, Chandni Chowk at 413 and Mundka at 411, according to official data. Dense fog also continued to disrupt air travel at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA).
A total of 97 flights were cancelled on Sunday due to low visibility, including 48 arrivals and 49 departures. More than 200 flights were delayed, with an average departure delay of around 23 minutes, as per flight tracking website Flightradar24.