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On Tuesday morning inhabitants of the planet's dirtiest urban center encountered inhaling severely hazardous air that was classified as the "critical" level.

Extremely High Pollution Readings

Several parts of the city showed an air quality index over 500, which represents a tenfold increase over the healthy level recommended by the World Health Organization.

Certain monitoring stations, levels of PM2.5 and PM10 reached peaks of eighteen hundred, amounting to 15-20x higher than acceptable levels.

Fireworks Prohibition and Current Changes

For the past four years, the government had implemented a total prohibition on the distribution and bursting of firecrackers during the Festival of Lights due to their major role to the dangerous pollution that blankets the metropolis as the cold season begins.

However in recent months, the current regional administration appealed to the highest court to request a modification of the restrictions.

The suggestion was allowing "green crackers" – which have been questioned by environmental experts as being only about 30% reduced emissions – as a middle ground between "cultural practices and public health".

Court Verdict and Reality

Much to the frustration of public health and environmental activists, judicial authorities approved the proposal, specifying that eco-friendly pyrotechnics could be ignited during limited hours throughout the Diwali.

Throughout the festival evening, there was considerable flouting of the regulated periods across the metropolis, with minimal regulation regarding whether the firecrackers being used were actually the supposedly greener version.

Numerous monitoring devices throughout the capital registered contamination spiking around midnight to some of the worst levels seen during Diwali in at least three years.

Cross-Border Implications

The proliferation of firecrackers during Diwali also initiated a dispute with adjacent the neighboring country, with officials in Pakistan's Punjab pointing to worsening pollution levels in Lahore on pollutants originating in India following the events.

Long-Standing Pollution Crisis

Extremely elevated levels of atmospheric toxins in the capital have persisted as a major issue for over a decade and a half, with the situation gradually deteriorating.

Around Diwali, the levels of hazardous particulate matter in the air has been observed to spike to 70% higher the worst levels ever documented in China's capital, which was previously considered as the world's most polluted city.

Various Contamination Factors

The problem in the capital is caused by a mix of various sources including automobile exhaust, construction debris, construction activities, garbage fires and pollutants from crop residue ignition in adjacent states of farming communities.

In these regions, agricultural workers regularly set their fields on fire to prepare for next season, producing hazardous haze that remains stagnant over the capital as winter air arrives.

Health and Financial Toll

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

The contaminated air leads to high levels of neurological, heart and circulatory and respiratory disorders, and can potentially cause cancer.

Environmental contamination is calculated to be responsible for approximately 10k premature mortalities annually in the city.