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As Tuesday dawned citizens of the world's most polluted city were faced with inhaling extremely polluted air that fell into the "severe" range.

Record-Breaking Pollution Measurements

Multiple areas of the city registered an air quality index above 500, which translates to ten times the recommended level established by the WHO.

In some locations, concentrations of dangerous airborne particles hit highs of 1,800, amounting to 15-20x above healthy levels.

Pyrotechnics Restrictions and Current Policy Shifts

For the past four years, the government had enforced a total prohibition on the purchase and ignition of firecrackers during Diwali due to their significant contribution to the hazardous smog that blankets the capital as colder weather approaches.

However earlier this year, the recently formed regional leadership appealed to the highest court to request a easing of the restrictions.

They proposed allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – previously criticized by environmental experts as being only about 30% reduced emissions – as a compromise between "tradition and environment".

Legal Ruling and Reality

To the disappointment of medical and ecological activists, the court complied with the request, specifying that green firecrackers could be used during limited time windows throughout the celebrations.

Throughout the festival evening, there was considerable violation of the designated hours across the capital, with minimal regulation regarding whether the firecrackers being used were actually the eco-friendly type.

Many monitoring devices throughout the city registered contamination peaking around midnight to extremely hazardous measurements seen during celebrations in at least recent memory.

International Effects

The widespread use of firecrackers during Diwali also triggered a controversy with neighbouring the neighboring country, with representatives in Pakistani the Punjab region pointing to deteriorating pollution levels in Lahore on hazardous particles traveling from neighboring India following the festivities.

Persistent Pollution Crisis

The dangerously high concentrations of pollution in the city have continued as a major issue for over a decade and a half, with the problem showing no improvement.

Around celebratory seasons, the amount of dangerous particulate matter in the air has been found to spike to 70% higher the peak records ever recorded in the Chinese city, which was formerly regarded as the world's most polluted city.

Diverse Contamination Sources

The problem in the city is attributed to a combination of multiple factors including automobile exhaust, dust, building projects, rubbish burning and smoke from crop residue ignition in adjacent states of Punjab and Haryana.

Within these states, rural residents routinely set their fields on fire to expedite field preparation, producing hazardous pollution that becomes contained over the city as colder air arrives.

Public Health and Economic Consequences

Public health and economic toll on the nearly 33 million people residing in the metropolitan zone is significant, according to multiple studies.

These hazardous conditions causes high levels of nervous system, cardiovascular and breathing disorders, and can even lead to cancer.

Environmental contamination is projected to be responsible for approximately 10k premature mortalities annually in the capital.