Fog disrupts Delhi airport ops; 118 flights cancelled, 16 diverted
New Delhi (PTI): At least 118 flights were cancelled, 16 flights diverted and 130 services delayed at the Delhi airport on Tuesday as dense fog disrupted operations.
The Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), operated by DIAL, handles around 1,300 flights daily.
An official said 60 arrivals and 58 departures were cancelled while 16 flights were diverted at the airport.
Information from flight tracking website Flightradar24.com showed that 130 flights were delayed on Tuesday morning at the airport and the average delay time for departures was around 28 minutes.
In a post on X in the morning, Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) said all flight operations continue as normal and flights that are not CAT III compliant may get affected.
CAT III compliance allows pilots to operate flights in low visibility conditions.
Against the backdrop of fog and low visibility conditions, the civil aviation ministry on Tuesday said airlines have been instructed to strictly comply with passenger facilitation norms.
These include "timely flight information, meals for delayed passengers, rebooking or refunds in case of cancellations, no denial of boarding after timely check-in, baggage facilitation and prompt grievance redressal".
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Rupee hits all-time low for second time in a week
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee depreciated 31 paise to settle at 91.99 against the US dollar on Wednesday, touching the lowest closing level for the second time in less than a week, amid increased month-end demand for the greenback.
Forex traders said the rupee opened higher as the US dollar index softened and a long-awaited trade breakthrough with Europe offered quiet reassurance. However, increased month-end demand for the American currency as well as the ongoing geopolitical tensions dented investors' sentiments.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 91.60 and touched an early high of 91.50, but pared all the gains to touch an intra-day low of 91.99 against the greenback.
The domestic unit settled 31 paise down, revisiting its lowest-ever closing level of 91.99 against the greenback. The Indian currency previously ended at this level on January 23 when it also hit its all-time intraday low of 92 against the US dollar.
On Tuesday, the rupee rebounded from its all-time low levels and gained 22 paise to close at 91.68 against the US dollar.
Analysts said the rupee opened higher as the US dollar index softened and a long-awaited trade breakthrough with Europe bolstered investor sentiment.
India and the European Union on Tuesday announced the conclusion of negotiations for the free trade agreement (FTA), under which a number of domestic sectors such as apparel, chemicals and footwear will get duty-free entry into the 27-nation bloc, while the EU will get access to the Indian market at concessional duty for cars and wines, an official said.
The deal has been dubbed the "mother of all deals" as it will create a market of about 2 billion people.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.07 per cent lower at 96.14.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.43 per cent lower at USD 67.28 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex jumped 487.20 points to settle at 82,344.68, while Nifty surged 167.35 points to 25,342.75.
Foreign Institutional Investors turned net buyers and purchased equities worth Rs 480.26 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
