60 Flights Delayed As Dust Storm Hits Delhi-NCR; Rahul Gandhi's Chopper Makes Emergency Landing

A helicopter carrying former Congress President Rahul Gandhi was forced to make an emergency landing in Rewari in Haryana after it failed to touch ground in New Delhi due to bad weather conditions.

60 flights at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in New Delhi were delayed. (Representative Image/ Getty)

New Delhi: A helicopter carrying former Congress President Rahul Gandhi was forced to make an emergency landing in Rewari in Haryana after it failed to touch ground in New Delhi due to bad weather conditions. According to reports, Rahul Gandhi was returning to the national capital from Mahendragarh in Haryana after addressing a public rally in place of her mother Sonia Gandhi, who could not attend the event to a viral infection. It has also being learnt that the Congress leader later left for Delhi by road. When contacted, Rewari Deputy Commissioner Yashendra Singh told PTI that Gandhi spent about 20 minutes at the college ground before proceeding to Delhi. "There was an emergency landing.... The helicopter landed safely at Rewari," Singh said. In response to speculations, sources close to Gandhi said his helicopter was forced to abort its landing in Delhi due to bad weather and not due to a technical snag. During his small halt at Rewari's KLP College ground, Rahul Gandhi played cricket with children at the ground. This was Rahul Gandhi's second poll rally in the state that goes to polls on October 21. Earlier he had addressed a public meeting in Nuh in Mewat region of the state. According to official reports, as many as 60 flights at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in New Delhi were delayed due to bad weather in the city. Several flights were diverted from the Delhi airport because of the bad weather conditions as several airlines issued advisories and updates about their flights. "#TravelUpdate Due to bad weather in Delhi, flights to and from Delhi may be impacted. Please visit http://airvistara.com or SMS UK<flight no> to 9289228888 for updated flight status. Thank you," tweeted Vistara Airlines

#TravelUpdate Due to bad weather in Delhi, flights to and from Delhi may be impacted. Please visit https://t.co/IZ9taT0TOv or SMS UK<flight no> to 9289228888 for updated flight status. Thank you.

— Vistara (@airvistara) October 18, 2019

"#6ETravelAdvisory: Due to heavy air traffic congestion at #Delhi airport, there have been delays in flight departures and arrivals. Do keep a track of your flight status in advance. For assistance, contact us on Twitter/Facebook or chat with us at http://goindigo.in," Indigo Airlines said it is tweet.

#6ETravelAdvisory: Due to heavy air traffic congestion at #Delhi airport, there have been delays in flight departures and arrivals. Do keep a track of your flight status in advance. For assistance, contact us on Twitter/Facebook or chat with us at https://t.co/7UGOtouYYS

— IndiGo (@IndiGo6E) October 18, 2019

The departures were put on hold from 7 pm because of dust storms in the area. Arrivals, however, were on schedule.