Quick reads
- Ash from the Hayli Gubbi volcano in Ethiopia drifted across the Arabian Sea and reached parts of India, including Delhi-NCR, on 24–25 Nov 2025.
- The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said satellite tracking showed the ash plume moved east and had exited Indian airspace by late evening, reducing risk to Delhi and north India.
- The plume disrupted some international flights; carriers such as Air India and Akasa suspended or cancelled a number of services as a safety precaution.
- IMD and aviation agencies said the ash affected flight operations but posed no immediate threat to local weather or Delhi’s air quality; monitoring continues.
No danger now, says IMD ash affected flights but cleared from skies over Delhi
- A volcanic eruption of the Hayli Gubbi volcano in Ethiopia sent a high-altitude ash plume that, carried by upper winds, travelled across the Red Sea and Arabian Peninsula and reached parts of western and northern India on 24–25 November. Satellite images and tracking showed the ash mass passing over Gujarat before spreading briefly into Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and the Delhi-NCR region.
- The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said its satellite analysis indicated the ash cloud moved on and had left Indian airspace by late evening on 25 November, and that it was heading towards China. The IMD added that the main impact was on aviation safety, not on local weather or pollution levels in Delhi. Authorities urged people to follow official advisories and avoid relying on social media rumours.
- Civil aviation regulators and airlines took precautionary measures: several international flights were cancelled or rerouted and aircraft that might have flown through ash-affected corridors were subjected to safety checks. Regulators highlighted that volcanic ash is hazardous to jet engines and flight instruments, so temporary disruptions were expected while the plume passed.
- On the ground, weather and air-quality monitors showed no clear deterioration in Delhi’s pollution directly attributable to the ash during the episode; meteorologists said any tiny ash particles would have been too sparse to change the city’s overall AQI significantly. Still, IMD and aviation agencies kept tracking the plume until international volcanic-ash advisory centres took over monitoring as it moved east.
- According to IMD updates and aviation advisories, Delhi and North India are not under continuing threat from the Ethiopian ash plume — the immediate danger has passed — but authorities will continue to monitor skies and aircraft movements until the event is fully cleared.
