A day after Diwali, India’s capital wakes up to a toxic haze

India’s capital Delhi woke up to a toxic haze as air quality worsened after the Hindu festival of Diwali, despite a court directive to use less polluting crackers.

People in the city and suburbs threw crackers late into the night on Monday, defying a court order to use only ‘green’ fireworks for a limited period.

Delhi, which has high pollution throughout the year due to factors including vehicular emissions and dust, has already seen a drop in air quality over the past few days.

On Tuesday, Delhi’s air quality index (AQI) was 360, according to government data. The AQI measures the level of PM 2.5 – fine particulate matter that can clog the lungs and cause a host of illnesses – in the air.

Levels between 101 and 200 are considered moderate, while those between 201 and 300 are “bad.” Between 301 and 400 is categorized as “very poor” and a number higher than 400 is considered “severe”.

World Health Organization guidelines say exposure to PM 2.5 over a 24-hour period should be limited to 15 micrograms per cubic meter – but Delhi’s AQI in some parts was 24 times the recommended level.

The city’s pollution problem worsens in winter as farmers in neighboring states burn crop stubble. Low wind speeds also trap pollutants — such as those produced by firecrackers — in the lower atmosphere, making breathing difficult.

That is why fireworks have been banned in Delhi and its suburbs during Diwali since 2020. However, this rule was not strictly enforced locally and the cookies were still available for purchase in many shops, leading to their use during the festival.

Last week the Supreme Court of India mitigated the total banwhich allows people to use so-called green crackers, which manufacturers say emit 20-30% less pollutants than traditional crackers and generate minimal ash. However, critics have pointed out that although relatively less harmful, these crackers still emit toxic substances into the air.

On the eve of Diwali, BBC reporters saw traditional crackers still being sold openly in shops. And though the court had allowed the bursting of green crackers only during a limited period – one hour in the morning and two in the evening on Diwali and the day before, the sound of fireworks could be heard far past midnight in many areas.

On Tuesday, when BBC reporter Vikas Pandey left his home in Noida (a suburb of Delhi) around 06:00 local time (00:30 GMT) to catch an early morning flight, he realized that “the familiar smell of burning coal had returned”.

“The air was full of smoke and the visibility was poor. I could taste ash in my mouth. As the taxi entered Delhi, the visibility became even worse. The tall buildings normally visible at this hour had disappeared behind a thick veil of smog,” he says.

Experts worry that the loosening of cracker rules could affect awareness of the dangers of air pollution, which has been building over the past few years.

Of course, Delhi’s air quality was already in the ‘very poor’ category, with the AQI crossing 300, for about a week, due to several factors such as low wind speed, vehicular emissions and stubble burning in neighboring states.

On Sunday, officials triggered the next phase of the Graduated Response Action Plan (GRAP) in Delhi and its suburbs, imposing restrictions on the use of diesel generators and the burning of coal and firewood in a bid to improve air quality.

For now, as the familiar smog descends over Delhi, its residents seem resigned.

“You can’t even think of going outside. The situation looks equally bad in densely populated areas and rural areas in Delhi today,” said Paras Tyagi, who lives in the capital.

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