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As Tuesday dawned inhabitants of the planet's dirtiest urban center encountered exposed to dangerously toxic air that fell into the "alarming" level.

Extremely High Pollution Readings

Several parts of the capital showed an air quality index over 500, which represents 10x the recommended threshold established by the World Health Organization.

Particular areas, concentrations of toxic particulate matter hit highs of 1800, equating to fifteen to twenty times higher than safe levels.

Pyrotechnics Ban and New Policy Shifts

For the past four years, authorities had maintained a total prohibition on the purchase and ignition of fireworks during Diwali due to their significant contribution to the deadly pollution that covers the capital as the cold season approaches.

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

Officials advocated for allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – previously doubted by environmentalists as being only roughly 30 percent reduced emissions – as a balance between "cultural practices and environment".

Judicial Decision and Implementation

Despite concerns of medical and ecological campaigners, judicial authorities agreed to the proposal, mandating that environmentally conscious fireworks could be used during specific hours throughout the festival.

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

Numerous monitoring devices throughout the city registered contamination reaching highest levels around late evening to the most severe readings seen during celebrations in at least the past three years.

Regional Consequences

The widespread use of firecrackers during the festival also triggered a dispute with bordering the neighboring country, with authorities in Pakistani Punjab province partially attributing worsening atmospheric conditions in the city of Lahore on contaminants coming from neighboring India following the events.

Chronic Pollution Problem

The dangerously high readings of pollution in the city have remained as a significant problem for over a decade and a half, with the situation gradually deteriorating.

During Diwali, the concentration of dangerous airborne contaminants in the environment has been observed to shoot up to significantly exceeding the most severe records ever measured in China's capital, which was formerly viewed as the globally most contaminated city.

Diverse Contamination Factors

This crisis in Delhi is caused by a convergence of various sources including automobile exhaust, airborne particles, building projects, waste incineration and smoke from farm burning in neighbouring states of neighboring agricultural zones.

Throughout these areas, agricultural workers routinely burn crop residue to clear them quickly, creating hazardous pollution that then gets trapped over the city as cooler air descends.

Medical and Economic Consequences

The economic and health impact on the nearly 33 million residents living in the metropolitan zone is significant, according to multiple studies.

This pollution results in elevated rates of nervous system, cardiovascular and respiratory disorders, and can potentially cause cancer.

The pollution is projected to be responsible for ten thousand premature mortalities annually in the capital.