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As Tuesday dawned inhabitants of this heavily contaminated metropolis found themselves exposed to severely hazardous air that registered in the "critical" category.

Alarming Air Quality Measurements

Various sections of Delhi showed an AQI exceeding 500, which translates to 10x the recommended limit recommended by the World Health Organization.

Certain monitoring stations, readings of dangerous airborne particles reached peaks of 1,800, equating to 15-20x above acceptable standards.

Pyrotechnics Prohibition and New Changes

For the past four years, authorities had enforced a total prohibition on the distribution and bursting of fireworks during the Festival of Lights due to their substantial impact to the dangerous smog that engulfs the capital as colder weather approaches.

Yet recently, the recently formed local government appealed to the supreme court to request a relaxation of the prohibition.

Officials advocated for allowing "environmentally conscious pyrotechnics" – historically criticized by conservation groups as being only approximately one-third lower impact – as a compromise between "cultural practices and ecological concerns".

Court Decision and Implementation

Much to the frustration of medical and ecological campaigners, judges complied with the proposal, mandating that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be used during designated periods throughout the celebrations.

On Monday night, there was extensive flouting of the regulated periods across the city, with little regulation regarding whether the pyrotechnics being used were actually the supposedly greener type.

Numerous recording stations throughout the city recorded air quality reaching highest levels around late evening to extremely hazardous levels recorded during Diwali in at least the past three years.

International Implications

The widespread use of pyrotechnics during the celebrations also triggered a blame game with neighbouring the neighboring country, with representatives in Pakistan's Punjab province pointing to worsening atmospheric conditions in the city of Lahore on contaminants traveling from India following the celebrations.

Long-Standing Pollution Issue

The dangerously high levels of atmospheric toxins in Delhi have continued as a significant problem for over a decade and a half, with the situation gradually deteriorating.

During Diwali, the amount of hazardous particles in the environment has been documented to increase dramatically to significantly exceeding the peak readings ever recorded in the Chinese city, which was once regarded as the world's most polluted metropolis.

Diverse Contamination Contributors

The situation in Delhi is resulting from a mix of different contributors including transportation pollution, airborne particles, building projects, rubbish burning and pollutants from crop residue ignition in adjacent states of neighboring agricultural zones.

Within these states, rural residents regularly burn crop residue to prepare for next season, generating hazardous smog that becomes contained over the metropolitan area as cooler air descends.

Public Health and Financial Impact

Public health and economic impact on the approximately 33 million residents living in the metropolitan zone is significant, according to various research.

These hazardous conditions results in high levels of nervous system, heart and circulatory and respiratory diseases, and can result in oncological diseases.

Environmental contamination is estimated to be causing 10,000 premature fatalities per year in Delhi.