Several vehicles collide in pile-up on Eastern Peripheral Expressway due to dense fog in Greater Noida | Video

MUltiple vehicles collided on the Eastern computer peripheral state highway in Greater Noida on mon due to impenetrable murk. A thick layer of fog gripped Delhi-NCR, reducing visibility to nearly zero.A video shared by news agency PTI showed multiple vehicles piled up on a busy road, causing damage and disrupting traffic. There was no word yet on casualties, if any, as of Monday afternoon.The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for Delhi due to dense fog. Temperatures were recorded below 12 degrees Celsius in the capital city on December 15.Also read| 61 flights cancelled, over 400 delayed due to Delhi smog; Messi's plans hit tooDelhi Airport advisoryMore than 60 flights were cancelled and over 400 delayed as a dense blanket of smog continued to cover Delhi and its adjoining areas on Monday morning.Earlier, Delhi airport issued a travel advisory for passengers on Monday, December 15, warning that flight operations may experience disruptions."Due to dense fog, flight operations may experience disruptions. We are working closely with all stakeholders to minimise inconvenience to passengers. For the latest flight updates, passengers are advised to contact their respective airlines. We sincerely regret any inconvenience caused," the airport said in a post on the social media platform X.Also read| Delhi AQI ‘severe’ for third straight day, smog worsens choking effect, hits flights | Know worst-hit areas15-vehicle pile-up on EPEEarlier, Poor visibility on the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) led to a pile-up involving around 15 vehicles on Saturday morning as thick fog engulfed the stretch and vehicles ahead slowed down, officials said.No casualties were reported, and the congestion was cleared within two hours.Delhi AQIAs per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital stood at 441 at 1 pm.An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered 'good', 51–100 'satisfactory', 101–200 'moderate', 201–300 'poor', 301–400 'very poor', and 401–500 'severe'.GRAP-4 invoked in DelhiThe Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) invoked Stage IV of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) on Saturday, the strictest measure under its air pollution control plan.The measures included a ban on all construction and demolition activities in the Delhi-NCR region. The Delhi government also directed 50 per cent of staff in government and private offices to work from home, while all schools up to Class 11 (except Class 10) were instructed to conduct classes in hybrid mode—both physical and online.