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Tuesday brought residents of the world's most polluted city found themselves exposed to extremely polluted air that fell into the "severe" level.

Extremely High Pollution Levels

Various sections of Delhi registered an AQI over 500, which equals 10x the healthy limit established by the global health authority.

Particular areas, concentrations of dangerous airborne particles reached peaks of 1,800, representing fifteen to twenty times higher than healthy standards.

Pyrotechnics Ban and Recent Developments

For the past four years, authorities had maintained a complete ban on the distribution and bursting of fireworks during celebrations due to their significant contribution to the deadly pollution that covers the metropolis as colder weather sets in.

Yet in recent months, the newly elected local administration petitioned the supreme court to propose a modification of the prohibition.

They proposed allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – which have been questioned by conservation groups as being only approximately one-third reduced emissions – as a balance between "tradition and environment".

Legal Ruling and Implementation

Despite concerns of environmental and health advocates, judges approved the appeal, stipulating that environmentally conscious fireworks could be used during designated periods throughout the festival.

Throughout the festival evening, there was extensive violation of the designated hours across the city, with insufficient regulation regarding whether the firecrackers being used were actually the eco-friendly type.

Numerous recording stations throughout the capital registered pollution reaching highest levels around late evening to extremely hazardous levels seen during the festival in at least the past three years.

International Effects

Extensive ignition of pyrotechnics during Diwali also initiated a blame game with neighbouring the neighboring country, with authorities in Pakistani Punjab partly blaming declining air quality in their urban centers on contaminants traveling from neighboring India following the celebrations.

Long-Standing Environmental Crisis

Alarmingly severe concentrations of atmospheric toxins in the capital have persisted as a significant challenge for over a decade and a half, with the condition showing no improvement.

Around Diwali, the amount of hazardous particles in the atmosphere has been documented to increase dramatically to significantly exceeding the most severe readings ever measured in Beijing, which was formerly regarded as the globally most contaminated metropolis.

Multiple Pollution Contributors

The problem in Delhi is caused by a combination of multiple factors including transportation pollution, construction debris, construction activities, garbage fires and smoke from crop residue ignition in nearby regions of farming communities.

Throughout these areas, rural residents illegally set their fields on fire to expedite field preparation, producing toxic pollution that remains stagnant over the city as colder air sets in.

Health and Economic Consequences

Both financial and medical impact on the roughly thirty-three million residents residing in the capital region is significant, according to various studies.

The contaminated air results in high levels of nervous system, heart and circulatory and breathing disorders, and can result in malignancies.

Environmental contamination is calculated to be causing ten thousand untimely mortalities each year in Delhi.