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As Tuesday dawned inhabitants of the world's most polluted city were faced with breathing dangerously toxic air that was classified as the "severe" level.

Record-Breaking Air Quality Levels

Multiple areas of the city showed an air quality index exceeding 500, which translates to ten times the recommended threshold established by the WHO.

In some locations, readings of toxic particulate matter soared to of 1,800, equating to 15-20x above healthy standards.

Pyrotechnics Prohibition and Recent Changes

Since 2020, authorities had enforced a complete ban on the purchase and ignition of fireworks during Diwali due to their significant contribution to the dangerous haze that blankets the metropolis as colder weather approaches.

Nevertheless in recent months, the recently formed local government petitioned the highest court to request a easing of the ban.

They proposed allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – which have been questioned by conservation groups as being only about 30% reduced emissions – as a compromise between "cultural practices and public health".

Judicial Verdict and Reality

Much to the frustration of medical and ecological advocates, judicial authorities approved the appeal, mandating that environmentally conscious fireworks could be ignited during limited time windows throughout the festival.

During the celebrations, there was considerable disregard of the designated hours across the metropolis, with insufficient regulation regarding whether the fireworks being used were actually the eco-friendly variety.

Several monitoring devices throughout the capital recorded contamination peaking around midnight to some of the worst levels recorded during the festival in at least recent memory.

International Consequences

The widespread use of fireworks during the celebrations also triggered a blame game with adjacent the neighboring country, with authorities in Pakistani Punjab province pointing to declining atmospheric conditions in their urban centers on hazardous particles coming from India following the events.

Chronic Environmental Problem

The dangerously high concentrations of air contamination in the city have remained as a major challenge for over a decade and a half, with the situation gradually deteriorating.

Around the festival period, the levels of hazardous airborne contaminants in the environment has been observed to spike to significantly exceeding the most severe readings ever measured in the Chinese city, which was formerly viewed as the planet's dirtiest metropolis.

Diverse Contamination Sources

The problem in the city is attributed to a convergence of multiple factors including heavy vehicle emissions, airborne particles, construction activities, rubbish burning and pollutants from farm burning in neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana.

Within these states, rural residents routinely ignite agricultural waste to expedite field preparation, generating dangerous pollution that remains stagnant over the capital as winter air descends.

Health and Economic Toll

Public health and economic toll on the approximately 33 million people living in the capital region is substantial, according to numerous studies.

This pollution leads to high levels of neurological, heart and circulatory and breathing conditions, and can potentially cause oncological diseases.

Air quality crisis is estimated to be accounting for 10,000 untimely fatalities per year in Delhi.