Fog affects trains, flights; school timings revised in several states
What's the story
Delhiites woke up to cold and thick fog morning for the third day in a row on Wednesday as the general visibility went down to 500 meters at the Indira Gandhi International Airport at 5:30 am, per the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
The weather office said that a dense to very dense layer of fog covered parts of Punjab, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
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Fog affects visibility in various cities
The thick layer of fog caused poor visibility in several cities on Wednesday morning, the weather office said in a social media post.
Meanwhile, IMD also shared INSAT 3D RAPID Satellite visuals that showed a continuation of a thick layer of fog from northwest Rajasthan and Punjab to east UP over Haryana.
Twitter Post
IMD posts updates
trough and the fog layer lies below it.
— India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) December 21, 2022
Visibility (meters) recorded at 0530 hrs IST of today:
Amritsar-25, Bhatinda-0, Ganganagar-25, Ambala-50, Bareilly-25, Bahraich-50, Varanasi-50 pic.twitter.com/Gyk1Ek4SBV
Weather update
Minimum temperature in Delhi drops to 6.3 degrees Celsius
On Tuesday, the primary weather station in Delhi, Safdarjung Observatory, reported a minimum temperature of 6.3 degrees Celsius, two notches below normal.
Meanwhile, the thick fog also affected air and rail traffic.
Delhi International Airport Limited's (DIAL) social handle released an advisory to all passengers saying: "Passengers are requested to contact the airline concerned for updated flight information."
Twitter Post
Flight operations normal: Delhi airport
Kind attention to all flyers!#Fog #FogAlert #DelhiAirport pic.twitter.com/3aDhJGMBtq
— Delhi Airport (@DelhiAirport) December 20, 2022
Result
Trains affected due to fog
Approximately 20 trains were delayed at the New Delhi Railway Station due to the low visibility and thick layer of fog covering the national capital this morning.
On Wednesday, the Delhi Airport released another statement saying that flights were being diverted or were returning to Delhi due to bad weather in Chandigarh, Varanasi, and Lucknow.
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Night bus services suspended in Noida
With the foggy winter that has hit northern India, and the thick fog causing several accidents, authorities have decided to halt the Noida depot bus services until 7:00 am from 9:00 pm.
The decision was made amid the increasingly foggy conditions, and the authorities have also resolved to call-off reservation service for night bus journeys for the next month.
Fog affect
Punjab revises school timings
Bhagwant Mann, Punjab Chief Minister, announced on Tuesday that all schools across the state would open at 10 am till January 21 amid the foggy winters.
However, CM Mann confirmed the closing time of all schools would stay the same.
Notably, schools in Punjab usually start at 9 am and close at 3 pm.
Info
More states change school timings
Schools in UP's Ghaziabad also revised their timings due to the dense fog.
Classes from 1 to 12 will now start at 9 am from Wednesday onwards.
The changes have also received approval from the Secondary Education Council, UP Prayagraj.
All schools affiliated with Madrasa Education Board, ICSE, CBSE, Sanskrit, and council schools approved the timings.