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On Tuesday morning citizens of the world's most polluted city were faced with breathing dangerously toxic air that fell into the "critical" category.

Record-Breaking Air Quality Readings

Multiple areas of Delhi 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, concentrations of toxic particulate matter hit highs of eighteen hundred, equating to 15 to 20 times exceeding safe levels.

Firecracker Prohibition and Current Changes

For the past four years, the government had implemented a total prohibition on the sale and use of fireworks during Diwali due to their major role to the hazardous smog that blankets the metropolis as colder weather sets in.

Yet earlier this year, the recently formed city government appealed to the highest court to seek a modification of the restrictions.

They proposed allowing "environmentally conscious pyrotechnics" – which have been criticized by environmentalists as being only roughly 30 percent reduced emissions – as a compromise between "tradition and ecological concerns".

Legal Decision and Reality

Despite concerns of public health and environmental activists, the court agreed to the proposal, mandating that green firecrackers could be used during designated time windows throughout the festival.

On Monday night, there was considerable violation of the time restrictions across the capital, with insufficient regulation regarding whether the pyrotechnics being used were actually the more environmentally friendly type.

Numerous recording stations throughout the city recorded air quality spiking around late evening to the most severe measurements observed during Diwali in at least three years.

Cross-Border Implications

The widespread use of fireworks during Diwali also initiated a dispute with bordering Pakistan, with authorities in Pakistani Punjab province partly blaming deteriorating atmospheric conditions in their urban centers on hazardous particles traveling from across the border following the celebrations.

Persistent Pollution Problem

Extremely elevated concentrations of air contamination in the city have persisted as a major problem for fifteen-plus years, with the condition showing no improvement.

Around Diwali, the amount of toxic particulate matter in the atmosphere has been observed to shoot up to significantly exceeding the most severe readings ever documented in Beijing, which was formerly viewed as the planet's dirtiest city.

Multiple Pollution Contributors

The situation in the city is caused by a mix of multiple factors including heavy vehicle emissions, airborne particles, building projects, rubbish burning and smoke from agricultural fires in neighbouring areas of Punjab and Haryana.

In these regions, rural residents regularly burn crop residue to prepare for next season, creating hazardous pollution that becomes contained over the capital as colder air sets in.

Public Health and Economic Consequences

Both financial and medical impact on the approximately 33 million inhabitants residing in the metropolitan zone is enormous, according to multiple studies.

The contaminated air leads to high levels of nervous system, heart and circulatory and respiratory conditions, and can result in oncological diseases.

Air quality crisis is projected to be causing ten thousand early mortalities per year in Delhi.