Diwali provokes ‘hazardous’ alert over New Delhi air quality

Fireworks acceptable disconnected for the festival of lights lend to Indian capital’s ‘worst successful the world’ aerial quality.

Fireworks acceptable disconnected to observe the Diwali festival person worsened the aerial prime successful India’s superior New Delhi, making it the astir “hazardous” successful the world.

The city’s aerial prime scale (AQI) measurement deed 442 connected Tuesday morning, according to Swiss aerial prime steadfast IQAir.

Recommended Stories

• list 1 of 3New Delhi’s garbage mountains go vigor bombs for India’s discarded pickers
• list 2 of 3Charged for saying ‘I emotion Muhammad’, India’s Muslims decry gov’t crackdown
• list 3 of 3India: How is the taste struggle successful Manipur affecting mean citizens?

As happens each year, the wide usage of fireworks connected Monday evening to people the festival of lights added to the contamination released successful cooler months by traffic, manufacture and agriculture to marque New Delhi the globe’s astir polluted large city, IQAir said.

The attraction of PM2.5 – tiny airborne particles tiny capable to participate the lungs and origin superior unwellness – successful the city’s aerial connected Tuesday greeting was much than 59 times the World Health Organization’s recommended yearly guideline.

India’s Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) rated New Delhi’s aerial prime “very poor,” with an AQI of 350. CPCB considers an AQI of 0-50 arsenic good.

Vehicles determination connected a roadworthy shrouded successful smog successful New Delhi, India, connected October 2, 2025 [Bhawika Chhabra/Reuters]

The toxic aerial is partially fuelled by fireworks from the Hindu festival, which is being celebrated from October 18–23.

India’s Supreme Court past week relaxed a prohibition connected firecrackers successful the city, permitting the usage of alleged “green crackers,” which person little emissions than accepted fireworks, for a maximum of 3 hours each connected Sunday and Monday. But determination were wide reports of fireworks being acceptable disconnected agelong extracurricular the allotted times.

Days of ‘very poor’ air

New Delhi is improbable to get overmuch alleviation successful the coming days. The Ministry of Earth Sciences said it expects aerial prime to stay “Very Poor to Poor” with AQI levels betwixt 201 and 400.

India’s superior and its neighbouring districts are prone to a heavy smog each wintertime arsenic cold, dense aerial traps operation dust, conveyance emissions and fume from cultivation fires, leaving galore of its 20 cardinal residents struggling with respiratory illnesses.

In the past, authorities person closed schools, stopped gathering enactment and placed restrictions connected backstage vehicles to effort to tackle the problem.

Last November, Delhi was flooded by weeks of deadly smog – causing the AQI to hover 1 evening astatine much than 1,700 – astatine slightest 17 times higher than the acceptable limit.

A commuter with his look covered successful cloth rides on a span crossed the Yamuna stream successful New Delhi connected October 21, 2025 [AFP]

India is not unsocial among South Asian nations successful battling specified toxic air.

The aerial prime speechmaking for Lahore successful Pakistan was 234 connected Tuesday, the 2nd highest successful the world, according to IQAir data.

Lahore is the superior of the Punjab province, which shares a borderline with India. The authorities has implemented an “emergency plan” to tackle pollution, including by curbing workplace fires and smoke-emitting vehicles, portion utilizing anti-smog guns successful polluted areas.

“Right now, the large contented is the aerial coming from Indian Punjab and different parts, which is affecting the aerial prime successful assorted parts of Pakistani Punjab,” said Sajid Bashir, a spokesperson for Punjab’s Environment Protection Agency.