🔗 Share this article

As Tuesday dawned inhabitants of this heavily contaminated metropolis encountered breathing severely hazardous air that registered in the "alarming" category.

Alarming Pollution Levels

Several parts of Delhi registered an air quality index above 500, which translates to 10x the healthy limit recommended by the WHO.

Particular areas, levels of toxic particulate matter hit highs of 1,800, representing 15 to 20 times higher than healthy standards.

Firecracker Ban and Recent Policy Shifts

For the past four years, authorities had implemented a comprehensive restriction on the purchase and ignition of pyrotechnics during celebrations due to their major role to the deadly smog that covers the metropolis as the cold season begins.

Nevertheless earlier this year, the newly elected regional administration approached the highest court to seek a easing of the prohibition.

They proposed allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – which have been questioned by environmentalists as being only approximately one-third reduced emissions – as a compromise between "tradition and public health".

Judicial Verdict and Implementation

Despite concerns of public health and environmental activists, the court approved the request, specifying that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be ignited during limited periods throughout the celebrations.

On Monday night, there was extensive disregard of the designated hours across the capital, with insufficient enforcement regarding whether the pyrotechnics being used were actually the supposedly greener version.

Numerous recording stations throughout the capital showed contamination reaching highest levels around late evening to the most severe readings observed during the festival in at least the past three years.

Cross-Border Implications

The proliferation of fireworks during the festival also initiated a blame game with neighbouring the neighboring country, with officials in Pakistani Punjab partly blaming declining atmospheric conditions in their urban centers on pollutants coming from India following the events.

Persistent Environmental Crisis

The dangerously high concentrations of pollution in Delhi have persisted as a major issue for over a decade and a half, with the problem continuing to worsen.

Around Diwali, the concentration of hazardous particulate matter in the air has been documented to increase dramatically to significantly exceeding the most severe levels ever documented in the Chinese city, which was once considered as the world's most polluted metropolis.

Multiple Pollution Sources

This crisis in the capital is attributed to a mix of multiple factors including transportation pollution, construction debris, building projects, garbage fires and pollutants from agricultural fires in nearby regions of Punjab and Haryana.

Within these states, farmers routinely set their fields on fire to expedite field preparation, generating hazardous smog that then gets trapped over the city as cooler air arrives.

Medical and Financial Consequences

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

This pollution results in increased incidence of neurological, cardiovascular and lung diseases, and can even lead to malignancies.

Air quality crisis is estimated to be causing ten thousand premature deaths annually in the capital.