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Tuesday brought residents of the world's most polluted city encountered breathing extremely polluted air that was classified as the "alarming" range.

Alarming Air Quality Levels

Various sections of the capital recorded an air quality index exceeding 500, which equals a tenfold increase over the safe threshold recommended by the global health authority.

Particular areas, levels of toxic particulate matter soared to of eighteen hundred, amounting to 15-20x above safe levels.

Pyrotechnics Prohibition and Recent Changes

For the past four years, authorities had enforced a complete ban on the purchase and ignition of fireworks during celebrations due to their major role to the hazardous pollution that engulfs the metropolis as winter begins.

Nevertheless recently, the newly elected local leadership appealed to the judicial authority to request a easing of the prohibition.

The suggestion was allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – which have been criticized by environmentalists as being only approximately one-third reduced emissions – as a compromise between "heritage and public health".

Court Ruling and Enforcement

To the disappointment of medical and ecological advocates, the court agreed to the appeal, stipulating that environmentally conscious fireworks could be used during designated hours throughout the festival.

During the celebrations, there was extensive violation of the time restrictions across the metropolis, with minimal regulation regarding whether the fireworks being used were actually the eco-friendly type.

Many monitoring devices throughout the city registered contamination peaking around the night hours to some of the worst readings seen during celebrations in at least the past three years.

International Implications

Extensive ignition of pyrotechnics during the celebrations also initiated a blame game with bordering Pakistan, with authorities in Pakistan's Punjab province partly blaming worsening atmospheric conditions in the city of Lahore on contaminants traveling from across the border following the events.

Persistent Environmental Crisis

Alarmingly severe concentrations of atmospheric toxins in the city have remained as a significant issue for fifteen-plus years, with the situation gradually deteriorating.

Around the festival period, the concentration of toxic particles in the air has been found to spike to seventy percent above the worst levels ever recorded in Beijing, which was formerly viewed as the planet's dirtiest city.

Various Pollution Sources

The situation in the capital is resulting from a combination of multiple factors including transportation pollution, airborne particles, development work, garbage fires and haze from agricultural fires in nearby regions of neighboring agricultural zones.

Throughout these areas, agricultural workers illegally ignite agricultural waste to expedite field preparation, producing toxic haze that becomes contained over the metropolitan area as colder air arrives.

Medical and Economic Toll

Both financial and medical toll on the nearly 33 million inhabitants residing in the Delhi area is significant, according to multiple research.

These hazardous conditions leads to elevated rates of nervous system, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, and can potentially cause malignancies.

The pollution is projected to be responsible for 10,000 premature fatalities annually in Delhi.