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As Tuesday dawned residents of this heavily contaminated metropolis were faced with exposed to severely hazardous air that registered in the "alarming" range.

Alarming Pollution Levels

Various sections of the city showed an AQI exceeding 500, which represents a tenfold increase over the recommended limit established by the World Health Organization.

Particular areas, levels of PM2.5 and PM10 reached peaks of eighteen hundred, amounting to 15 to 20 times exceeding acceptable standards.

Pyrotechnics Ban and Recent Developments

For the past four years, officials had implemented a comprehensive restriction on the distribution and bursting of fireworks during the Festival of Lights due to their major role to the hazardous smog that blankets the metropolis as colder weather approaches.

Yet earlier this year, the recently formed regional leadership approached the supreme court to request a relaxation of the prohibition.

They proposed allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – historically questioned by conservation groups as being only approximately one-third less polluting – as a compromise between "cultural practices and environment".

Legal Ruling and Reality

To the disappointment of environmental and health advocates, the court complied with the appeal, mandating that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be set off during designated periods throughout the festival.

During the celebrations, there was extensive violation of the regulated periods across the metropolis, with little regulation regarding whether the firecrackers being used were actually the eco-friendly version.

Several air quality sensors throughout Delhi recorded pollution peaking around midnight to the most severe levels observed during celebrations in at least recent memory.

Regional Consequences

Extensive ignition of fireworks during the festival also sparked a blame game with neighbouring the neighboring country, with officials in Pakistani Punjab pointing to declining air quality in their urban centers on pollutants coming from neighboring India following the events.

Long-Standing Pollution Crisis

The dangerously high readings of atmospheric toxins in the city have continued as a major problem for more than 15 years, with the situation showing no improvement.

During Diwali, the amount of dangerous particulate matter in the environment has been found to increase dramatically to 70% higher the peak readings ever documented in the Chinese city, which was once regarded as the globally most contaminated city.

Diverse Pollution Sources

The problem in the capital is resulting from a convergence of different contributors including heavy vehicle emissions, construction debris, building projects, garbage fires and pollutants from crop residue ignition in adjacent areas of farming communities.

In these regions, rural residents routinely set their fields on fire to expedite field preparation, creating toxic haze that becomes contained over the city as cooler air arrives.

Public Health and Economic Consequences

Public health and economic consequences on the approximately 33 million residents calling home the capital region is substantial, according to various studies.

This pollution causes elevated rates of nervous system, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, and can potentially cause cancer.

The pollution is calculated to be accounting for approximately 10k premature fatalities per year in the city.