The nation’s capital, Delhi, had already been in the headlines for days for its worst pollution level, and due to dense fog, the situation deteriorated further today as the visibility dropped to 500 meters at 5.30 a.m. near Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI).
Table of Contents
Three people were dead and around forty were injured as the biting cold continued its grip on the nation’s capital. Stoppage of bus services at night, changes in school timings, cancellation of trains, and changes in flight schedules are some of the woes added to the already-worried Delhiites’ routines in this cold weather.
Major revamps in bus, train & air routes due to fog
The chilling winter accompanied by dense fog led only to the stark disruption in people’s travel routine. Bus services in Noida, the sources said, would come to a halt from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. and the authorities had decided to cancel the reservation services for night journeys as well.
The upper-speed limit on National Highways had also been set, which would be from 75 km/hr. to 100 km/hr. & 65km/hr. for key roads like MP1, MP2, MP3 & DSC
It was the third consecutive day that Delhi was engulfed in dense fog, which led to the complete cancellation and changes in the timing of several trains to and from the capital. The update from CPRO Northern Railway reported that around 249 trains were inoperable due to the worst fog situations in New Delhi, as of Wednesday, December, 21st.
Passengers had to wait for minutes to hours to board their respective trains due to the changes in the schedule.
Airports are not exempt from the icy hands of Delhi fog, as visibility was reduced to 500 meters on Wednesday morning. The flight services, according to the spokesperson, remained unruffled except for three flights that returned to Delhi on Tuesday night because of bad weather conditions in Varanasi, Chandigarh, and Lucknow.
However, passengers are advised to check the timings with the authorities or the official Twitter handles for updates before heading to the airports.
Changes in School Timings
Considering the fog level in Delhi-NCR, the Education Department felt apprehensive about poor visibility, which could lead to more road accidents, and about the safety of the children, and school timings, according to the Ghaziabad District Administration, for classes 1 to 12 had been changed as classes would commence only at 9 a.m. The announcement stated that the change in timing would be applicable to all government and private schools.
Air Quality Index
The dense layer of fog from the season’s first wave led to a deterioration in the air quality level in Delhi, which remained in ‘very poor’ category. When the AQI ( Air Quality Index) slipped to 410 (severe) on Monday, there were talks to invoke curbs on non-essential construction and the closure of mining activities in Delhi. Since AQI lowered down eventually on Wednesday, the curb was put on hold for a while.
Read More: New Delhi-Mumbai expressway photos Shared by Nitin Gadkari
