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Tuesday brought citizens of the world's most polluted city encountered breathing dangerously toxic air that fell into the "alarming" category.

Record-Breaking Air Quality Levels

Various sections of the city registered an air quality index above 500, which equals a tenfold increase over the safe limit recommended by the global health authority.

In some locations, readings of toxic particulate matter soared to of 1800, representing fifteen to twenty times above acceptable levels.

Pyrotechnics Prohibition and Recent Changes

For the past four years, the government had enforced a complete ban on the purchase and ignition of pyrotechnics during Diwali due to their substantial impact to the dangerous smog that blankets the city as the cold season begins.

Yet recently, the newly elected regional administration appealed to the highest court to request a relaxation of the prohibition.

They proposed allowing "green crackers" – previously doubted by environmental experts as being only approximately one-third reduced emissions – as a compromise between "heritage and public health".

Judicial Ruling and Enforcement

Much to the frustration of environmental and health activists, judges agreed to the appeal, stipulating that environmentally conscious fireworks could be used during limited hours throughout the festival.

On Monday night, there was considerable violation of the time restrictions across the capital, with little regulation regarding whether the fireworks being used were actually the supposedly greener type.

Many air quality sensors throughout Delhi registered air quality peaking around midnight to extremely hazardous readings seen during Diwali in at least the past three years.

Cross-Border Consequences

The widespread use of fireworks during Diwali also triggered a controversy with adjacent Pakistan, with officials in Pakistani Punjab province pointing to deteriorating pollution levels in the city of Lahore on hazardous particles traveling from across the border following the celebrations.

Persistent Environmental Crisis

The dangerously high readings of air contamination in Delhi have persisted as a serious problem for over a decade and a half, with the problem showing no improvement.

Around the festival period, the amount of hazardous particulate matter in the air has been documented to spike to 70% higher the most severe readings ever recorded in China's capital, which was formerly regarded as the globally most contaminated metropolis.

Various Contamination Sources

The situation in Delhi is caused by a combination of multiple factors including automobile exhaust, airborne particles, development work, garbage fires and haze from agricultural fires in adjacent areas of Punjab and Haryana.

Throughout these areas, rural residents regularly set their fields on fire to prepare for next season, creating dangerous pollution that becomes contained over the metropolitan area as cooler air sets in.

Health and Financial Impact

Public health and economic toll on the nearly 33 million residents calling home the capital region is substantial, according to numerous research.

The contaminated air causes elevated rates of nervous system, heart and circulatory and breathing conditions, and can result in cancer.

Air quality crisis is calculated to be responsible for approximately 10k untimely deaths per year in the capital.