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On Tuesday morning residents of this heavily contaminated metropolis encountered inhaling severely hazardous air that registered in the "alarming" category.

Extremely High Air Quality Levels

Several parts of Delhi recorded an pollution measurement over 500, which equals a tenfold increase over the recommended limit established by the WHO.

Certain monitoring stations, concentrations of PM2.5 and PM10 soared to of 1,800, amounting to 15-20x higher than safe limits.

Pyrotechnics Prohibition and Recent Changes

Since 2020, authorities had enforced a total prohibition on the distribution and bursting of pyrotechnics during Diwali due to their significant contribution to the deadly haze that blankets the capital as winter sets in.

Nevertheless recently, the newly elected city government approached the highest court to seek a modification of the prohibition.

Officials advocated for allowing "green crackers" – which have been questioned by environmentalists as being only about 30% less polluting – as a balance between "cultural practices and public health".

Legal Decision and Implementation

Despite concerns of medical and ecological campaigners, judicial authorities complied with the proposal, stipulating that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be set off during limited time windows throughout the festival.

On Monday night, there was widespread disregard of the designated hours across the city, with little enforcement regarding whether the fireworks being used were actually the supposedly greener version.

Many recording stations throughout Delhi registered air quality peaking around late evening to the most severe readings observed during the festival in at least the past three years.

Cross-Border Consequences

The widespread use of fireworks during the festival also initiated a blame game with bordering Pakistan, with representatives in Pakistan's Punjab province partially attributing declining pollution levels in the city of Lahore on hazardous particles coming from neighboring India following the celebrations.

Chronic Pollution Issue

The dangerously high readings of atmospheric toxins in the capital have remained as a significant challenge for over a decade and a half, with the situation gradually deteriorating.

Near the festival period, the amount of hazardous particles in the atmosphere has been found to spike to significantly exceeding the most severe records ever recorded in China's capital, which was formerly regarded as the globally most contaminated urban center.

Diverse Contamination Factors

This crisis in the capital is resulting from a mix of various sources including automobile exhaust, airborne particles, construction activities, waste incineration and smoke from crop residue ignition in neighbouring areas of Punjab and Haryana.

Within these states, rural residents illegally set their fields on fire to expedite field preparation, producing dangerous smog that becomes contained over the metropolitan area as winter air arrives.

Health and Financial Toll

The economic and health toll on the nearly 33 million people residing in the capital region is significant, according to various investigations.

These hazardous conditions results in increased incidence of nervous system, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, and can potentially cause oncological diseases.

The pollution is estimated to be accounting for ten thousand premature deaths per year in the capital.