Delhi was enveloped in dense fog on Tuesday morning, severely impacting air and rail traffic across the national capital, as air quality deteriorated to the “severe” category. According to the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) Sameer app, the Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 414 at 7:05 am.
Among the stations in the severe zone, Anand Vihar emerged as the most polluted, logging an AQI of 466, followed by nehru Nagar (453), Okhla Phase-2 (452), and Jahangirpuri (447).
The thick fog led to a sharp drop in visibility, disrupting flight operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport. Airport officials said departures and arrivals were affected due to low-visibility conditions.
Rail services were also hit, with several long-distance and suburban trains running behind schedule, while a few were cancelled due to poor visibility across the region. Early morning visuals from the New Delhi Railway Station showed passengers waiting amid delays as fog continued to blanket the city.
On Monday, more than 500 flights were delayed and at least 14 flights were cancelled as weather conditions worsened, causing inconvenience to passengers.
According to CPCB standards, 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'.