No respite from fog for northern states, 5 killed in road accidents

A dense layer of fog enveloped the northern plains for a third consecutive day on Thursday, severely reducing visibility and disrupting flight and train services, as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted no significant relief for Delhi, Haryana and Chandigarh till December 31.

Five people were killed in separate accidents in Uttar Pradesh as the fog cover plunged down visibility to less than 30 metres in some areas, according to the state meteorological department officials. IMD said "dense to very dense" fog was reported in some parts of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh with a marginal rise in morning temperature across the region.

"Dense to very dense fog (0-25 metres) in some pockets of Uttar Pradesh and in isolated pockets over Haryana, Chandigarh and Delhi, Southwest Rajasthan and North Madhya Pradesh," the IMD said in a bulletin.

"Less than 30 metres of visibility was recorded in Patiala, Ambala, Chandigarh Haryana, Chandigarh, Delhi, Palam, Bareilly, Lucknow, Varanasi and Gwalior," it said.