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As Tuesday dawned citizens of this heavily contaminated metropolis were faced with breathing dangerously toxic air that registered in the "alarming" category.

Extremely High Pollution Measurements

Multiple areas of Delhi recorded an AQI exceeding 500, which represents ten times the recommended threshold recommended by the global health authority.

Particular areas, concentrations of toxic particulate matter soared to of eighteen hundred, amounting to 15-20x higher than acceptable limits.

Fireworks Ban and Current Developments

For the past four years, officials had implemented a complete ban on the distribution and bursting of pyrotechnics during the Festival of Lights due to their major role to the dangerous pollution that engulfs the city as winter approaches.

Yet in recent months, the recently formed city leadership appealed to the highest court to propose a relaxation of the prohibition.

Officials advocated for allowing "environmentally conscious pyrotechnics" – previously doubted by environmentalists as being only approximately one-third less polluting – as a balance between "tradition and ecological concerns".

Legal Ruling and Enforcement

Despite concerns of public health and environmental activists, the court approved the request, mandating that environmentally conscious fireworks could be set off during designated time windows throughout the festival.

During the celebrations, there was considerable disregard of the time restrictions across the capital, with insufficient regulation regarding whether the firecrackers being used were actually the eco-friendly type.

Many air quality sensors throughout Delhi recorded air quality reaching highest levels around midnight to some of the worst levels observed during celebrations in at least three years.

Regional Consequences

The widespread use of firecrackers during the festival also sparked a dispute with adjacent Pakistan, with officials in Pakistani Punjab partially attributing deteriorating atmospheric conditions in their urban centers on hazardous particles originating in neighboring India following the celebrations.

Persistent Environmental Problem

The dangerously high readings of pollution in Delhi have remained as a major challenge for over a decade and a half, with the situation showing no improvement.

Around Diwali, the levels of toxic particulate matter in the air has been documented to increase dramatically to 70% higher the most severe records ever measured in the Chinese city, which was once viewed as the planet's dirtiest urban center.

Various Pollution Sources

The problem in the city is attributed to a combination of various sources including transportation pollution, airborne particles, construction activities, waste incineration and haze from agricultural fires in adjacent regions of neighboring agricultural zones.

In these regions, farmers routinely burn crop residue to expedite field preparation, creating toxic pollution that then gets trapped over the city as cooler air descends.

Public Health and Financial Consequences

Both financial and medical impact on the nearly 33 million people calling home the Delhi area is substantial, according to numerous research.

This pollution results in high levels of neurological, cardiovascular and lung disorders, and can even lead to cancer.

The pollution is calculated to be responsible for ten thousand premature mortalities each year in Delhi.