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On Tuesday morning residents of the planet's dirtiest urban center were faced with inhaling dangerously toxic air that was classified as the "severe" category.

Extremely High Air Quality Readings

Multiple areas of Delhi registered an pollution measurement exceeding 500, which translates to 10x the healthy threshold recommended by the World Health Organization.

In some locations, readings of toxic particulate matter hit highs of eighteen hundred, amounting to 15 to 20 times above safe standards.

Fireworks Ban and Recent Changes

For the past four years, authorities had implemented a total prohibition on the purchase and ignition of pyrotechnics during celebrations due to their significant contribution to the hazardous smog that blankets the metropolis as the cold season approaches.

Nevertheless in recent months, the current regional government appealed to the supreme court to request a easing of the prohibition.

Officials advocated for allowing "green crackers" – previously criticized by environmentalists as being only roughly 30 percent less polluting – as a middle ground between "cultural practices and public health".

Legal Verdict and Enforcement

Much to the frustration of environmental and health activists, judges approved the proposal, specifying that environmentally conscious fireworks could be used during designated periods throughout the celebrations.

Throughout the festival evening, there was extensive disregard of the designated hours across the metropolis, with insufficient enforcement regarding whether the pyrotechnics being used were actually the supposedly greener version.

Many air quality sensors throughout the city recorded air quality reaching highest levels around the night hours to the most severe readings seen during Diwali in at least the past three years.

Cross-Border Consequences

Extensive ignition of firecrackers during the celebrations also initiated a dispute with adjacent the neighboring country, with representatives in Pakistan's the Punjab region partly blaming deteriorating pollution levels in the city of Lahore on pollutants originating in India following the celebrations.

Persistent Environmental Crisis

Extremely elevated levels of atmospheric toxins in Delhi have remained as a significant challenge for fifteen-plus years, with the situation gradually deteriorating.

During Diwali, the concentration of hazardous particulate matter in the atmosphere has been found to shoot up to 70% higher the most severe records ever documented in the Chinese city, which was formerly viewed as the world's most polluted city.

Multiple Pollution Contributors

The situation in the city is attributed to a convergence of different contributors including transportation pollution, construction debris, development work, rubbish burning and pollutants from agricultural fires in adjacent areas of neighboring agricultural zones.

Throughout these areas, rural residents illegally burn crop residue to clear them quickly, creating hazardous pollution that remains stagnant over the metropolitan area as colder air sets in.

Medical and Economic Toll

The economic and health consequences on the approximately 33 million residents residing in the Delhi area is significant, according to various investigations.

This pollution results in increased incidence of nervous system, heart and circulatory and lung disorders, and can result in malignancies.

The pollution is calculated to be responsible for 10,000 untimely mortalities annually in Delhi.