IMD issues dense fog alert for these districts till December 23; Delhi AQI remains in ‘very poor’ category

Dense to very dense fog is likely during night and morning hours across parts of East Uttar Pradesh till 23 December, and Punjab, Haryana, West Uttar Pradesh & North Madhya Pradesh till 22 December, said the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday.

According to the weather department, Bihar, Jharkhand & interior Odisha may also experience dense fog till 24 December.

During such a time, low visibility is expected to disrupt road, rail, and air travel. Thereby, commuters have been advised to exercise caution, drive slowly, use fog lights, avoid high beams, and stay updated with local weather advisories.

Meanwhile, the national capital's air quality remained in the ‘very poor’ category on Sunday, as a thick blanket of smog and moderate fog significantly disrupted visibility and daily life of residents.

While the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 377, several parts of the city reported even more hazardous conditions, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

According to the CPCB's Sameer app, 16 out of the 40 monitoring stations in the city reported air quality in the ‘severe’ category, while the remaining recorded 'very poor' levels.

An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 to 100 ‘satisfactory’,101 to 200 ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 ‘poor’, 301 to 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 to 500 ‘severe’, according to the CPCB classification.

Visibility and fog impact

IMD reported significant visibility drops across major transit hubs.

Among the key weather monitoring stations, Palam recorded its lowest visibility at 300 meters due to moderate fog between 10 pm and 12:30 am IST. The visibility improved to 600 meters in shallow fog but fell back to 350 meters, with east-southeasterly winds blowing at a speed of 7 kilometers per hour, the official data showed, reported PTI.

Meanwhile at Safdarjung, the visibility dropped to its lowest at 200 meters in moderate fog between 1:30 am and 2:30 am IST. The condition gradually improved to 500 meters in shallow fog by 5.30 am, the IMD said.

The minimum temperature settled at 9.4 degrees Celsius, 1.3 degrees above the season's average whereas the maximum temperature settled at 18.1 degrees Celsius, whereas, the humidity was recorded at 100% at 5:30 pm, as per IMD.

IMD forecast for tomorrow

The weather department said that it expects similar conditions to start the next week.

Residents can expect to witness moderate fog on Monday morning, with maximum and minimum temperature expected to hover between 21 degrees Celsius and 9 degrees Celsius, respectively.

What is the govt doing in view of the situation?

In response to deteriorating air quality in the national capital, authorities have invoked all measures under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) Stage IV across the Delhi-NCR region.

The restrictions under GRAP-IV include a ban on non-essential construction activities, the entry of certain diesel vehicles, and enhanced enforcement to curb pollution sources.

While the worsening air quality remains a issue that needs to be tackled, dense fog has further compounded the crisis as it traps pollutants closer to the ground and reduces visibility. It has even led to disruption of flight operations in Delhi.