This story is from March 21, 2012

Storm makes Ahmedabad Gardabad

Jehangir, son of Akbar, visited Ahmedabad in 1617. He did not like the place and called it Gardabad, the city of dust.
Storm makes Ahmedabad Gardabad
AHMEDABAD: Jehangir, son of Akbar, visited Ahmedabad in 1617. He did not like the place and called it Gardabad, the city of dust.
On Tuesday, the citizens almost empathized with the Mughul ruler. They woke up expecting blazing sun but found a thick blanket of dust in the sky eclipsing the sun and affecting visibility. Weather became a hot topic of discussion as people mulled over what exactly was happening in the atmosphere to create such dusty weather.

Weather officials said that the dirty sky was result of dust particles suspended in the atmosphere over Gujarat region which had come blowing all the way from Rajasthan. With the ongoing western disturbance passing over Pakistan and Rajasthan, the squall hit the neighboring state's north-west with dust raising winds of 40 km per hour.
"Rajasthan is experiencing dust storms all over. Since the winds are north-westerly, the winds bore dust to Gujarat. The haze witnessed all over Gujarat is due to these dust particles suspended in the atmosphere," said Kamaljit Ray, director of India Meteorology Department (IMD) Gujarat.
"The visibility dropped to less than 1,000 meters from the normal 4,000-5,000 meters. We had posted personnel at the airport to keep civil aviation updated about the visibility levels," said Ray.
He said that the haze which enveloped the state skies all through Tuesday is likely to start clearing by Wednesday.
Airport officials said that while the haze was a cause of concern, take off or landing of no flight was affected. "The operations are affected only when visibility drops below 500 meters," said an airport official.

Meanwhile, people allergic to dust found it prudent to remain indoors rather than risking an attack. "I have confined myself to the bedroom with windows closed as the dust particles are too heavy," Neelima Patel, a 37-year-old asthma patient said.
Citizens caught unawares across state
Bhuj/Rajkot: Fresh western disturbance passing over northern India and parts of Pakistan resulted in a sudden change in weather across Gujarat.
Dusty storms were reported at many places in Saurashtra and Kutch, while the entire day remained foggy in the region.
"It was difficult to drive a two-wheeler because of low visibility and foggy conditions," a resident of Kalawad Road in Rajkot Nilesh Shah said.
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