Overview

• An active western disturbance drove a sudden afternoon–evening storm on Tuesday, prompting yellow and orange alerts for Delhi with warnings of thunderstorms, lightning, hail and gusty winds.
• Visibility at IGI fell to about 1,200 metres by 5 pm, leading to at least 15 flight diversions—eight to Jaipur, five to Lucknow and two to Chandigarh—and more than 100 delays, officials said.
• Delhi Airport and airlines including IndiGo, Air India and SpiceJet advised passengers to check flight status and allow extra time due to operational constraints and slow road traffic.
• Heavy rain triggered waterlogging and long traffic jams across Delhi-NCR, with police and agencies managing congestion on key stretches and routes to the airport.
• Weather stations logged notable rainfall and a temperature dip—Palam recorded 41.6 mm by 5:30 pm and Safdarjung’s October total reached 80.5 mm—while the AQI briefly improved to the ‘satisfactory’ range around 68–73.