🔗 Share this article Delhi Awakens to Dangerous Haze Post Festival of Lights On Tuesday morning inhabitants of the planet's dirtiest urban center encountered inhaling severely hazardous air that registered in the "severe" category. Record-Breaking Air Quality Levels Multiple areas of the capital recorded an pollution measurement exceeding 500, which translates to a tenfold increase over the recommended level recommended by the global health authority. Particular areas, readings of toxic particulate matter soared to of eighteen hundred, equating to 15 to 20 times higher than safe limits. Fireworks Ban and Recent Policy Shifts For the past four years, authorities had implemented a comprehensive restriction on the sale and use of pyrotechnics during celebrations due to their substantial impact to the deadly smog that engulfs the metropolis as the cold season sets in. Nevertheless earlier this year, the current regional administration appealed to the judicial authority to request a easing of the restrictions. Officials advocated for allowing "environmentally conscious pyrotechnics" – historically criticized by environmental experts as being only approximately one-third reduced emissions – as a compromise between "heritage and environment". Legal Verdict and Enforcement To the disappointment of environmental and health campaigners, judicial authorities approved the request, specifying that green firecrackers could be used during specific hours throughout the Diwali. Throughout the festival evening, there was widespread disregard of the designated hours across the capital, with little monitoring regarding whether the fireworks being used were actually the supposedly greener type. Several monitoring devices throughout the capital showed contamination reaching highest levels around late evening to some of the worst levels seen during celebrations in at least recent memory. Regional Effects The proliferation of pyrotechnics during the festival also initiated a controversy with bordering Pakistan, with officials in Pakistan's Punjab province pointing to worsening air quality in the city of Lahore on contaminants originating in India following the celebrations. Chronic Pollution Crisis The dangerously high readings of pollution in the city have continued as a major problem for more than 15 years, with the problem gradually deteriorating. Around Diwali, the concentration of dangerous particles in the air has been observed to shoot up to significantly exceeding the most severe readings ever recorded in China's capital, which was once viewed as the planet's dirtiest urban center. Diverse Pollution Sources This crisis in the capital is caused by a mix of various sources including heavy vehicle emissions, airborne particles, development work, rubbish burning and smoke from crop residue ignition in nearby states of neighboring agricultural zones. Within these states, agricultural workers regularly set their fields on fire to prepare for next season, generating hazardous haze that then gets trapped over the city as cooler air arrives. Medical and Economic Consequences Both financial and medical consequences on the roughly thirty-three million people living in the metropolitan zone is substantial, according to various research. These hazardous conditions results in high levels of neurological, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, and can potentially cause oncological diseases. The pollution is estimated to be accounting for 10,000 untimely fatalities per year in Delhi.