Chandigarh: Fog clears, sun show up, mercury climbs to 17.1°C

After days of biting cold conditions, residents got some respite as the fog cleared up and the temperature climbed three more notches to touch 17.1°C on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the maximum temperature was 14.8°C.

As per the India Meteorological Department (IMD), chances of moderate to dense fog will continue on Thursday and Friday but clear skies are likely again over the weekend.

At 17.1°C, the maximum temperature was still 1.1 degrees below normal. However, it was the highest since December 29, when it was 21.2°C, before the spell of dense fog began in the city.

Even on Wednesday morning, visibility was up to 500 metres in the city. But the fog cover lifted quickly, and it was partly sunny by noon.

As per IMD officials, the day temperature will rise in the coming days but the night temperature is expected to dip.

The minimum temperature fell from 9°C on Tuesday to 8.7°C on Wednesday, 1.5 degrees above normal.

Over the next three days, the maximum temperature will remain around 17°C while the minimum will remain around 9°C.

14 flights delayed

Though no flights were cancelled on Wednesday, at least 14 flights, including nine departure flights, were delayed at the Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport.

The flights that were delayed include: IndiGo flights to Dubai (6E 1481), Bengaluru (6E 6281 & 6E 658), Jaipur 6E 7743 & 6E 7461), Hyderabad (6E 6254), Mumbai (6E 5234), Srinagar (6E 874) and Vistara flight to Delhi (UK 707)

The arrival flights that got delayed were: IndiGo flights to Ahmedabad (6E 6244), Jaipur (6E 7742 & 6E 7404), Kolkata (6E 874) and Vistara flight to Bengaluru (UK 657).

While the visibility at the airport was recorded to be 400 m on Wednesday, the runway visual range (RVR) was 2,000 m.