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Tuesday brought citizens of this heavily contaminated metropolis were faced with breathing dangerously toxic air that registered in the "critical" category.

Extremely High Pollution Measurements

Several parts of the capital recorded an pollution measurement exceeding 500, which equals ten times the recommended limit set by the WHO.

In some locations, levels of PM2.5 and PM10 hit highs of eighteen hundred, equating to 15-20x higher than safe standards.

Firecracker Ban and New Changes

For the past four years, officials had implemented a complete ban on the purchase and ignition of fireworks during celebrations due to their major role to the deadly pollution that engulfs the city as colder weather approaches.

However earlier this year, the recently formed local government approached the supreme court to propose a modification of the restrictions.

Officials advocated for allowing "environmentally conscious pyrotechnics" – which have been criticized by environmentalists as being only approximately one-third reduced emissions – as a balance between "cultural practices and public health".

Judicial Decision and Implementation

To the disappointment of medical and ecological campaigners, judicial authorities approved the request, specifying that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be used during designated periods throughout the celebrations.

Throughout the festival evening, there was considerable flouting of the designated hours across the metropolis, with minimal regulation regarding whether the fireworks being used were actually the supposedly greener type.

Numerous recording stations throughout the city recorded air quality reaching highest levels around the night hours to extremely hazardous levels seen during celebrations in at least recent memory.

Regional Implications

The widespread use of fireworks during Diwali also sparked a blame game with neighbouring the neighboring country, with authorities in Pakistan's Punjab province partly blaming deteriorating pollution levels in the city of Lahore on contaminants coming from India following the celebrations.

Long-Standing Pollution Crisis

Extremely elevated readings of atmospheric toxins in the city have remained as a significant challenge for over a decade and a half, with the problem continuing to worsen.

Around celebratory seasons, the amount of hazardous particulate matter in the environment has been observed to increase dramatically to significantly exceeding the most severe readings ever recorded in China's capital, which was once considered as the world's most polluted metropolis.

Multiple Pollution Contributors

This crisis in the capital is resulting from a convergence of multiple factors including transportation pollution, construction debris, building projects, garbage fires and smoke from agricultural fires in neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana.

Within these states, agricultural workers illegally set their fields on fire to expedite field preparation, creating dangerous smog that becomes contained over the metropolitan area as winter air arrives.

Medical and Financial Toll

Both financial and medical toll on the nearly 33 million residents living in the Delhi area is significant, according to multiple investigations.

The contaminated air results in increased incidence of nervous system, heart and circulatory and lung disorders, and can even lead to oncological diseases.

Environmental contamination is estimated to be responsible for 10,000 premature mortalities annually in the city.