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On Tuesday morning residents of the world's most polluted city were faced with breathing dangerously toxic air that registered in the "alarming" category.

Alarming Air Quality Measurements

Several parts of Delhi registered an air quality index exceeding 500, which translates to 10x the safe level established by the WHO.

In some locations, levels of dangerous airborne particles soared to of eighteen hundred, amounting to fifteen to twenty times exceeding healthy levels.

Pyrotechnics Prohibition and New Developments

Beginning in 2020, the government had enforced a complete ban on the sale and use of fireworks during Diwali due to their major role to the dangerous smog that covers the capital as colder weather approaches.

However earlier this year, the recently formed regional government approached the highest court to propose a relaxation of the ban.

The suggestion was allowing "environmentally conscious pyrotechnics" – which have been criticized by environmental experts as being only roughly 30 percent reduced emissions – as a compromise between "cultural practices and public health".

Judicial Decision and Implementation

Despite concerns of medical and ecological advocates, judicial authorities agreed to the proposal, specifying that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be used during designated time windows throughout the Diwali.

During the celebrations, there was extensive violation of the designated hours across the metropolis, with insufficient regulation regarding whether the pyrotechnics being used were actually the supposedly greener variety.

Several recording stations throughout the capital recorded contamination reaching highest levels around late evening to extremely hazardous levels observed during Diwali in at least recent memory.

International Effects

The widespread use of fireworks during the festival also triggered a blame game with bordering Pakistan, with representatives in Pakistani Punjab partly blaming deteriorating atmospheric conditions in the city of Lahore on contaminants coming from India following the celebrations.

Long-Standing Environmental Crisis

Alarmingly severe levels of air contamination in the city have persisted as a serious issue for over a decade and a half, with the situation showing no improvement.

Near the festival period, the concentration of dangerous particulate matter in the air has been found to spike to seventy percent above the most severe levels ever documented in the Chinese city, which was once viewed as the planet's dirtiest urban center.

Various Pollution Factors

The situation in the city is attributed to a combination of multiple factors including heavy vehicle emissions, construction debris, building projects, garbage fires and smoke from farm burning in nearby regions of neighboring agricultural zones.

Within these states, farmers illegally ignite agricultural waste to prepare for next season, producing hazardous pollution that becomes contained over the city as cooler air sets in.

Health and Financial Consequences

The economic and health consequences on the approximately 33 million inhabitants living in the capital region is enormous, according to multiple investigations.

This pollution causes high levels of nervous system, cardiovascular and respiratory conditions, and can even lead to oncological diseases.

Air quality crisis is calculated to be accounting for approximately 10k untimely mortalities annually in the city.