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As Tuesday dawned citizens of the planet's dirtiest urban center were faced with inhaling extremely polluted air that was classified as the "critical" category.

Alarming Pollution Readings

Various sections of Delhi showed an pollution measurement above 500, which translates to a tenfold increase over the safe threshold established by the global health authority.

In some locations, levels of PM2.5 and PM10 reached peaks of 1800, equating to 15-20x higher than acceptable standards.

Fireworks Prohibition and Current Developments

For the past four years, the government had enforced a comprehensive restriction on the purchase and ignition of pyrotechnics during Diwali due to their significant contribution to the dangerous pollution that blankets the city as the cold season sets in.

Nevertheless recently, the current regional leadership appealed to the supreme court to request a modification of the ban.

The suggestion was allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – historically criticized by conservation groups as being only about 30% lower impact – as a balance between "tradition and environment".

Judicial Ruling and Enforcement

Despite concerns of environmental and health campaigners, judges agreed to the proposal, stipulating that green firecrackers could be used during limited time windows throughout the festival.

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

Several monitoring devices throughout the city recorded air quality reaching highest levels around the night hours to some of the worst measurements recorded during the festival in at least the past three years.

Regional Consequences

The widespread use of firecrackers during the celebrations also sparked a blame game with bordering the neighboring country, with representatives in Pakistan's Punjab province partly blaming deteriorating air quality in their urban centers on hazardous particles coming from India following the festivities.

Persistent Pollution Issue

The dangerously high concentrations of air contamination in the capital have persisted as a significant problem for fifteen-plus years, with the condition continuing to worsen.

During the festival period, the levels of dangerous particles in the environment has been documented to shoot up to significantly exceeding the most severe readings ever recorded in Beijing, which was formerly viewed as the planet's dirtiest metropolis.

Multiple Pollution Contributors

The situation in Delhi is resulting from a combination of different contributors including transportation pollution, construction debris, building projects, waste incineration and smoke from farm burning in neighbouring regions of Punjab and Haryana.

Within these states, agricultural workers regularly set their fields on fire to prepare for next season, creating hazardous smog that then gets trapped over the city as winter air arrives.

Medical and Financial Impact

Public health and economic toll on the nearly 33 million people residing in the Delhi area is enormous, according to numerous investigations.

These hazardous conditions leads to high levels of neurological, heart and circulatory and breathing conditions, and can even lead to cancer.

The pollution is projected to be causing approximately 10k early fatalities each year in the capital.