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

Record-Breaking Pollution Measurements

Several parts of the city registered an pollution measurement over 500, which translates to 10x the recommended limit established by the global health authority.

Particular areas, concentrations of toxic particulate matter reached peaks of 1,800, representing 15-20x higher than acceptable standards.

Firecracker Prohibition and Current Policy Shifts

For the past four years, officials had implemented a comprehensive restriction on the sale and use of pyrotechnics during the Festival of Lights due to their major role to the dangerous smog that blankets the capital as winter approaches.

However earlier this year, the recently formed regional administration appealed to the highest court to seek a easing of the prohibition.

The suggestion was allowing "eco-friendly fireworks" – previously criticized by environmental experts as being only approximately one-third less polluting – as a balance between "tradition and environment".

Judicial Ruling and Implementation

To the disappointment of medical and ecological campaigners, judicial authorities agreed to the appeal, mandating that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be set off during specific time windows throughout the festival.

Throughout the festival evening, there was considerable disregard of the regulated periods across the metropolis, with minimal monitoring regarding whether the pyrotechnics being used were actually the supposedly greener type.

Several monitoring devices throughout the capital recorded pollution peaking around midnight to extremely hazardous readings recorded during the festival in at least the past three years.

Regional Consequences

Extensive ignition of pyrotechnics during the celebrations also sparked a dispute with adjacent Pakistan, with authorities in Pakistan's the Punjab region partially attributing deteriorating air quality in their urban centers on contaminants originating in India following the celebrations.

Chronic Environmental Issue

Extremely elevated concentrations of atmospheric toxins in the city have continued as a serious problem for more than 15 years, with the problem continuing to worsen.

Near celebratory seasons, the concentration of dangerous particles in the air has been found to shoot up to 70% higher the most severe records ever recorded in Beijing, which was previously viewed as the globally most contaminated urban center.

Various Pollution Contributors

This crisis in the city is caused by a combination of different contributors including automobile exhaust, dust, building projects, rubbish burning and smoke from crop residue ignition in nearby regions of farming communities.

In these regions, agricultural workers illegally burn crop residue to prepare for next season, producing dangerous haze that remains stagnant over the metropolitan area as cooler air sets in.

Public Health and Financial Consequences

Both financial and medical impact on the approximately 33 million people living in the Delhi area is enormous, according to multiple studies.

These hazardous conditions leads to elevated rates of neurological, cardiovascular and breathing diseases, and can potentially cause cancer.

Air quality crisis is projected to be responsible for ten thousand premature deaths per year in the city.