Taj Mahal disappears behind thick smog as severe pollution persists across India

Toxic smog shrouded India's iconic Taj Mahal in Agra on Thursday (November 14), rendering it barely visible from the surrounding gardens of the 17th-century monument.

The dense haze also enveloped the Golden Temple, Sikhism's holiest shrine, in Amritsar, similarly obscuring it from view.

Officials cited high pollution levels, humidity, still winds, and a temperature drop as factors intensifying the haze.

At New Delhi’s international airport, visibility plummeted to 300 meters (980 feet), causing flight diversions on Wednesday (November 13). Pollution levels in Delhi are expected to remain in the ‘severe’ category on Friday (November 15), before possibly improving to ‘very poor’ (300–400), according to the Earth Sciences Ministry.