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On Tuesday morning inhabitants of the planet's dirtiest urban center found themselves inhaling dangerously toxic air that was classified as the "alarming" level.

Alarming Pollution Readings

Several parts of Delhi showed an air quality index over 500, which translates to a tenfold increase over the healthy level established by the global health authority.

In some locations, concentrations of dangerous airborne particles reached peaks of 1,800, representing 15-20x above healthy levels.

Pyrotechnics Ban and Current Changes

For the past four years, authorities had enforced a comprehensive restriction on the purchase and ignition of firecrackers during celebrations due to their substantial impact to the hazardous pollution that covers the metropolis as winter approaches.

Yet recently, the current city leadership approached the supreme court to request a easing of the ban.

They proposed allowing "environmentally conscious pyrotechnics" – which have been criticized by environmental experts as being only approximately one-third less polluting – as a compromise between "heritage and environment".

Judicial Decision and Enforcement

To the disappointment of public health and environmental activists, judges agreed to the appeal, stipulating that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be used during specific time windows throughout the celebrations.

During the celebrations, there was extensive flouting of the regulated periods across the city, with minimal regulation regarding whether the firecrackers being used were actually the more environmentally friendly version.

Numerous recording stations throughout the city recorded air quality peaking around late evening to some of the worst measurements seen during the festival in at least recent memory.

Cross-Border Consequences

The proliferation of pyrotechnics during Diwali also initiated a dispute with bordering the neighboring country, with representatives in Pakistani Punjab province pointing to declining pollution levels in Lahore on contaminants traveling from neighboring India following the events.

Chronic Environmental Issue

Extremely elevated concentrations of atmospheric toxins in the city have continued as a serious problem for over a decade and a half, with the situation showing no improvement.

Near Diwali, the amount of toxic particles in the air has been observed to increase dramatically to significantly exceeding the peak levels ever recorded in the Chinese city, which was once regarded as the planet's dirtiest urban center.

Diverse Pollution Contributors

This crisis in the capital is caused by a mix of various sources including heavy vehicle emissions, airborne particles, construction activities, rubbish burning and pollutants from farm burning in adjacent regions of Punjab and Haryana.

In these regions, rural residents routinely burn crop residue to clear them quickly, producing toxic pollution that remains stagnant over the city as cooler air sets in.

Medical and Financial Consequences

Public health and economic toll on the approximately 33 million people calling home the Delhi area is substantial, according to multiple investigations.

The contaminated air causes elevated rates of nervous system, heart and circulatory and respiratory disorders, and can potentially cause malignancies.

The pollution is projected to be responsible for approximately 10k early mortalities each year in the capital.