Air breathed by people in the city categorised as ‘severe’ in quality after fireworks contribute to thick smog
Delhi awoke to a thick haze on Tuesday, a day after millions of people celebrated the Hindu festival of Diwali with fireworks, marking the beginning of the pollution season that has become an annual blight on India’s capital.
Those in the most polluted city in the world once again found themselves breathing dangerously toxic air that fell into the “severe” category on Tuesday morning.
Part of Delhi showed an air quality index (AQI) of more than 500, which is 10 times higher than the level deemed healthy by the World Health Organization. In some areas, levels of PM2.5 and PM10 – the toxic particles causing pollution – recorded peaks of 1,800, which is 15 to 20 times higher than those deemed healthy.
Since 2020, the sale and bursting of firecrackers had been banned in Delhi during Diwali, known as the festival of light, due to their contribution to the deadly smog that engulfs the city as winter sets in.
