Residents of India's capital breathed a marginal sigh of relief on Tuesday as stronger winds pushed Delhi's air quality out of the 'severe' category for the first time in three days. However, the reprieve from the intense fog came too late for air travel, with hundreds of flights at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport facing cancellations and delays, a ripple effect from the previous day's paralysis.
Air Quality and Visibility See Marginal Improvement
The city's average Air Quality Index (AQI) settled at 354, marking a significant drop from the 427 recorded on Monday, which placed it in the 'severe' zone. The shift to the 'very poor' category was attributed to an increase in wind speed, which helped disperse pollutants. Meteorologist Mahesh Palawat from Skymet Weather explained that westerly winds with speeds of 18-20 kmph during the afternoon facilitated the improvement. He predicted moderate to strong winds over the next few days, likely leading to further betterment in air quality.
Visibility conditions also showed slight improvement. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported that the Safdarjung and Palam observatories recorded visibility levels of 800 metres and 600 metres, respectively, at 8 am on Tuesday. This was a notable change from Monday morning, when visibility had plummeted below 100 metres, halting all departures for nearly five hours.
Flight Operations in Disarray Despite Thinning Fog
Despite the thinning fog layer over Delhi, air traffic continued to suffer severe disruptions. Official data revealed that a total of 79 arriving and 52 departing flights were cancelled on Tuesday. Furthermore, approximately 500 flights experienced delays. Aviation officials clarified that the chaos was a direct cascading effect of Monday's severe fog conditions across North India.
"While the fog layer over Delhi thinned, several other airports saw low visibility. Some flights arrived later than their scheduled time due to poor weather conditions at their origin airport. Such flights were delayed when they departed from here," an airport official stated. Air India issued a statement detailing the widespread impact, noting that dense fog early Monday caused significant congestion and parking bay constraints at Delhi airport, disrupting schedules across airlines.
Forecast and Ongoing Challenges
The IMD has forecast shallow to moderate fog in the mornings over the coming days. The weather agency classifies fog intensity based on visibility: below 50 metres is 'very dense', 50-200 metres is 'dense', 200-500 metres is 'moderate', and 500-1,000 metres is 'shallow'.
Anticipating continued challenges, Air India proactively announced the cancellation of select flights scheduled for Wednesday, December 16. Meanwhile, the Centre's Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi indicated that the city's air quality is likely to remain in the 'very poor' category until at least Friday.
On the ground, of the 39 active air monitoring stations across the National Capital Region, only one—Mundka—recorded a 'severe' AQI of 407. Thirty-five stations reported 'very poor' air, while three fell into the 'poor' category. The data underscores that while conditions have improved, Delhi's air remains a serious health concern for its millions of inhabitants.
