🔗 Share this article India's capital Awakens to Hazardous Pollution Following Diwali Tuesday brought residents of the planet's dirtiest urban center were faced with inhaling extremely polluted air that registered in the "critical" level. Alarming Pollution Levels Various sections of the capital recorded an air quality index above 500, which represents ten times the healthy limit set by the World Health Organization. In some locations, concentrations of toxic particulate matter hit highs of 1800, equating to fifteen to twenty times exceeding acceptable standards. Fireworks Restrictions and Recent Developments For the past four years, officials had implemented a comprehensive restriction on the distribution and bursting of pyrotechnics during the Festival of Lights due to their significant contribution to the hazardous smog that covers the metropolis as winter approaches. However in recent months, the recently formed local administration approached the judicial authority to seek a easing of the ban. The suggestion was allowing "green crackers" – previously doubted by environmentalists as being only approximately one-third less polluting – as a middle ground between "heritage and ecological concerns". Legal Verdict and Reality Despite concerns of medical and ecological campaigners, judges approved the appeal, mandating that environmentally conscious fireworks could be set off during specific periods throughout the celebrations. On Monday night, there was widespread disregard of the regulated periods across the city, with insufficient enforcement regarding whether the firecrackers being used were actually the supposedly greener version. Several air quality sensors throughout the capital showed air quality reaching highest levels around late evening to extremely hazardous levels seen during Diwali in at least three years. International Consequences Extensive ignition of fireworks during Diwali also triggered a blame game with neighbouring the neighboring country, with authorities in Pakistan's the Punjab region partly blaming declining atmospheric conditions in the city of Lahore on pollutants traveling from India following the festivities. Long-Standing Environmental Issue Extremely elevated concentrations of atmospheric toxins in the capital have continued as a significant challenge for more than 15 years, with the situation gradually deteriorating. Around celebratory seasons, the levels of dangerous airborne contaminants in the air has been observed to shoot up to seventy percent above the peak levels ever documented in the Chinese city, which was previously considered as the globally most contaminated metropolis. Multiple Pollution Contributors This crisis in Delhi is resulting from a combination of various sources including heavy vehicle emissions, airborne particles, development work, garbage fires and haze from agricultural fires in neighbouring regions of Punjab and Haryana. Throughout these areas, rural residents routinely burn crop residue to clear them quickly, producing toxic pollution that then gets trapped over the capital as cooler air arrives. Health and Financial Impact Public health and economic consequences on the roughly thirty-three million people residing in the Delhi area is substantial, according to numerous studies. The contaminated air causes high levels of neurological, cardiovascular and lung disorders, and can result in malignancies. The pollution is projected to be accounting for 10,000 untimely fatalities per year in the city.