Thick Fog Disrupts Flights and Train Travel in New Delhi, India

Illustration of thick fog enveloping New Delhi, India. (Wikimedia Commons/Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change)

JAKARTA - Flight services and train travel were disrupted in India's capital, New Delhi, for the second day in a row on Monday, as thick fog and cold weather blanketed much of the country's north.

More than 100 flights were delayed in Delhi on Sunday, but intermittent flight operations had resumed on Monday morning, said an airport official who declined to be named, reported by Reuters, January 15.

According to aviation website Flightradar24, at least 168 flights from Delhi were delayed and 56 flights were canceled on Monday morning.

Meanwhile, at least 18 trains to Delhi from various parts of the country were delayed due to thick fog, News Agency ANI tweeted on social media X, citing local authority documents.

Meanwhile, the country's weather office predicted dense fog and a cold wave in New Delhi on Monday and 'very heavy fog' on Tuesday, with a minimum temperature of 4 degrees Celsius (39.2 Fahrenheit).

Yesterday, the city's Indira Gandhi International Airport did not operate from 4 a.m. to 10 a.m. local time, due to thick fog, the official said, leading to massive delays at airports across the country.

Social media and news channels showed visuals of angry passengers arguing with airport staff at New Delhi and other airports. One video shows a man punching a pilot who announced a flight delay on the plane.

"Stuck in a plane at Delhi Airport since last two hours," wrote X user Harteerath Singh Ahluwalia on Monday morning.