NEW DELHI: A powerful dust storm accompanied by rains hit Delhi and adjoining areas on Sunday evening resulting in diversion of around 70 flights at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here.


Flight operations to and from the IGI Airport were majorly with at least 70 diversions and more than two dozen delays due to poor visibility and strong winds.

The operations of almost all the airlines -- domestic and international -- were affected as the runway had to be closed down and the flight services suspended for a while, PTI sources said.

The diversions took place between 4.15 p.m. and 6.30 p.m.

The airlines informed the passengers about the delays and diversions on Twitter.

Dozens of flights were diverted to cities such as Jaipur, Amritsar and Lucknow.

Nince Delhi-bound flights made emergency landing at Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport after the Air Traffic Control did not permit them to land at Delhi's IGI Airport due to bad weather conditions, ANI reported.

Vistara said its Delhi-bound flights from Srinagar, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Mumbai and Goa were diverted.

"Till about 7.15 PM, over 40 diversions were reported. There could be over two dozen delays," a source said.

International flights from Katmandu, Riyadh, Colombo, Jeddah, Kabul were delayed even as flights from Tokyo, Newark and Colombo were diverted to other places, the sources said.