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On Tuesday morning citizens of the world's most polluted city encountered exposed to dangerously toxic air that fell into the "critical" range.

Extremely High Air Quality Readings

Multiple areas of Delhi recorded an pollution measurement above 500, which represents a tenfold increase over the healthy level set by the global health authority.

Certain monitoring stations, levels of PM2.5 and PM10 soared to of 1800, representing 15 to 20 times higher than safe limits.

Firecracker Restrictions and Current Changes

For the past four years, the government had implemented a comprehensive restriction on the purchase and ignition of firecrackers during Diwali due to their major role to the deadly smog that blankets the capital as winter begins.

However in recent months, the recently formed local government petitioned the supreme court to propose a modification of the restrictions.

They proposed allowing "green crackers" – which have been criticized by environmentalists as being only approximately one-third lower impact – as a balance between "cultural practices and ecological concerns".

Judicial Ruling and Enforcement

To the disappointment of environmental and health advocates, judges complied with the appeal, stipulating that green firecrackers could be ignited during designated periods throughout the Diwali.

Throughout the festival evening, there was widespread violation of the regulated periods across the metropolis, with minimal monitoring regarding whether the fireworks being used were actually the eco-friendly variety.

Numerous air quality sensors throughout the capital recorded contamination spiking around late evening to some of the worst measurements recorded during celebrations in at least three years.

International Consequences

The proliferation of fireworks during Diwali also triggered a dispute with adjacent the neighboring country, with officials in Pakistan's Punjab partly blaming declining atmospheric conditions in their urban centers on hazardous particles traveling from India following the celebrations.

Chronic Environmental Crisis

The dangerously high readings of atmospheric toxins in Delhi have persisted as a significant problem for over a decade and a half, with the condition gradually deteriorating.

During the festival period, the levels of hazardous airborne contaminants in the environment has been found to increase dramatically to seventy percent above the worst readings ever recorded in Beijing, which was previously viewed as the world's most polluted metropolis.

Diverse Pollution Sources

This crisis in the city is resulting from a mix of different contributors including automobile exhaust, airborne particles, building projects, garbage fires and haze from farm burning in adjacent regions of farming communities.

In these regions, rural residents regularly set their fields on fire to expedite field preparation, creating hazardous pollution that becomes contained over the capital as colder air arrives.

Health and Financial Impact

The economic and health impact on the roughly thirty-three million people calling home the metropolitan zone is enormous, according to multiple research.

The contaminated air leads to high levels of neurological, heart and circulatory and respiratory disorders, and can result in oncological diseases.

Air quality crisis is estimated to be accounting for 10,000 premature deaths each year in the city.