More than 500 flights to and from New Delhi’s airport were delayed and at least eight cancelled on Monday due to dense fog, airport authorities said.
The general visibility had slightly improved at around 3.00 pm (0930 GMT), a spokesman for Indira Gandhi International Airport said.
“Passengers have been asked to contact their respective airlines for further updates,” the spokesman said.
Similarly, six people were killed as their car skidded off a road into a canal in the Delhi suburb of Greater Noida late on Sunday after a dense fog created low visibility across New Delhi, police said on Monday.
Two children were among the six people killed when the car drove into the canal, local police official Akhilesh Pradhan said.
“Preliminary investigations indicate that the accident took place because of low visibility due to the fog,” Pradhan added.
The fog has disrupted flights and road and rail traffic since late Sunday.
Four flights from Delhi’s international airport were cancelled and 16 others diverted.
More than 35 flights were delayed, airport authorities said.
At least 30 trains to and from the city were running late due to low visibility, a spokesman for Indian Railways said.
Commuters driving across Delhi early in the morning moved at a crawl with their hazard lights on.
Delhi is currently experiencing its longest spell of cold weather in 22 years, with the temperature dipping to 2.6 degrees Celsius early on Monday.
The city’s air quality also plummeted to the severe category.
The weather office issued a “red warning” for New Delhi, signalling extreme weather conditions and urging the government to take “necessary action”.
These include providing night shelters and firewood for homeless.
The weather office said that the severe conditions were likely to continue until Tuesday, followed by rain and hailstorms in the city and neighbouring regions.
