Cold wave grips North India, Delhi airport issues fog advisory; rain forecast

North India continued to reel under intense cold wave conditions on Thursday, with dense fog blanketing Delhi.

The Delhi airport issued an advisory on low visibility conditions. However, it said that no flights were affected due to fog, much to the relief of flyers amid the holiday season. The general visibility at the Indira Gandhi International Airport at 7 am was 500 metres. The airport said that CAT III compliant flights were not affected. CAT III compliant flights are equipped to land safely during poor visibility conditions.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast mild to dense fog in the Delhi-NCR region for December 26. Temperatures are expected to dip further from December 27, with the weather getting colder by December 29, news agency PTI reported, quoting leading meteorologists.

In Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar recorded a low of minus 7.3 degrees Celsius on Christmas Day. As many as 18 trains en route to Delhi, including the Duronto Express and the Avadh Assam Express, are running late due to dense fog conditions.

Delhi’s air quality remained in the ‘very poor’ category, with the minimum and maximum temperatures predicted to be at 9 degree Celsius and 20 degree Celsius respectively.

The IMD has predicted light showers in the Delhi-NCR region later in the day, and rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms on December 27 and 28. Thunderstorms and hailstorms are also expected across Punjab, Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh on December 27 and 28.