Dense fog blankets Delhi; disrupts flight, train services

NEW DELHI: Dense fog engulfed the national capital today, disrupting flight operations and leading to cancellation of 50 Delhi-bound trains.

"The minimum temperature recorded at 8.30 AM was 7 degrees Celsius, a notch below normal for this time of the season," a MeT official said.

While the humidity in air was 100 per cent, the visibility dropped to mere 50 metres due to dense fog in various areas.

According to Northern Railway officials, 50 Delhi-bound trains including the premiere Rajdhani and Shatabdi Express were cancelled due to dense fog while 20 of them were reported to be running behind their schedule.

Operations at Delhi airport were also severely affected due to low visibility with most of the flights delayed.

"Three international flights including 2 Air India and one Spicejet were diverted as the aircraft were not Cat-III B enabled," airport authorities said.

CAT-III B allows the aircraft to land in visibility as low as 50 meters.

The weatherman has predicted moderate fog for the rest of the day.

"The maximum and minimum temperatures are likely to hover at 22 and 6 degrees Celsius," the official said.

Yesterday, the national capital had recorded a minimum temperature of 4.6 degrees Celsius while the maximum settled at 22.2 degrees. PTI GJS IAS ARU DV 01241203 NNNN