The India Meteorological Department (IMD) late on 9 December sounded a red alert for ‘very dense fog’ and sharp temperature drops across Punjab, Haryana, Delhi-NCR, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal through 12 December. Visibility is expected to fall below 50 metres during early-morning hours, raising the risk of cascading delays at the region’s busiest airports and rail corridors.
Airlines have begun issuing travel advisories asking passengers to opt for web check-in and arrive at least three hours before departure. Delhi and Kolkata airports activated Low-Visibility Procedures (LVP), moving additional CAT-III trained staff to critical taxiways and parking stands. Indian Railways has readied standby locomotive pilots and directed zone controllers to reduce train speeds in affected sectors.
![IMD issues dense-fog red alert for North & East India, warns of flight and rail delays]()
For travellers who may suddenly need to reroute through third-country hubs because of fog-related cancellations, VisaHQ’s quick online tools (https://www.visahq.com/india/) can confirm whether a transit visa is required and fast-track the paperwork for more than 200 destinations. Using the service can spare passengers expensive, last-minute surprises if airlines rebook them on alternate flights through cities such as Doha, Dubai, or Singapore.
The fog alert coincides with school vacations and corporate off-sites, traditionally one of the highest traffic windows for domestic tourism. A study by travel-insurance provider Digit claims weather-related flight disruptions last winter cost Indian travellers over ₹380 crore in re-booking fees and missed connections; the firm expects claims to spike again this week.
Travellers should book morning flights operating with CAT-III compliant aircraft where possible, track live flight status via the Digi Yatra app, and consider buffer nights for onward international connections. Corporates are advised to activate remote-meeting contingencies for personnel scheduled to transit the fog belt.
Airlines have begun issuing travel advisories asking passengers to opt for web check-in and arrive at least three hours before departure. Delhi and Kolkata airports activated Low-Visibility Procedures (LVP), moving additional CAT-III trained staff to critical taxiways and parking stands. Indian Railways has readied standby locomotive pilots and directed zone controllers to reduce train speeds in affected sectors.
For travellers who may suddenly need to reroute through third-country hubs because of fog-related cancellations, VisaHQ’s quick online tools (https://www.visahq.com/india/) can confirm whether a transit visa is required and fast-track the paperwork for more than 200 destinations. Using the service can spare passengers expensive, last-minute surprises if airlines rebook them on alternate flights through cities such as Doha, Dubai, or Singapore.
The fog alert coincides with school vacations and corporate off-sites, traditionally one of the highest traffic windows for domestic tourism. A study by travel-insurance provider Digit claims weather-related flight disruptions last winter cost Indian travellers over ₹380 crore in re-booking fees and missed connections; the firm expects claims to spike again this week.
Travellers should book morning flights operating with CAT-III compliant aircraft where possible, track live flight status via the Digi Yatra app, and consider buffer nights for onward international connections. Corporates are advised to activate remote-meeting contingencies for personnel scheduled to transit the fog belt.
