Thick smog blanketed New Delhi on Monday after Diwali firecrackers, pushing air quality into the severe category despite a Supreme Court ban on conventional fireworks.
On the morning of 9 November, the air quality index exceeded 350 in several parts of the capital, placing it in the severe category. Monitoring stations across the city recorded similarly alarming levels, while a grey haze covered streets and high-rise buildings and visibility fell.
Isyad, a New Delhi resident, described the impact on his health: "Because of the pollution there is irritation in the throat and itching in the eyes."
With more than 30 million residents, New Delhi and its metropolitan region are staggering in scale. They regularly rank among the world's most polluted areas in winter.
Court orders and approved alternatives
India's Supreme Court in October 2026 restricted conventional firecrackers and allowed only approved green firecrackers under specified conditions, in three-hour windows on Saturday and Sunday. Yet the approved green firecrackers emit less but are not pollution-free, and still release particulate matter and other pollutants into the city's already hazardous air. The smog that engulfed New Delhi on Monday showed the limits of this approach.
Why winter worsens the crisis
Several sources fuel New Delhi’s winter pollution crisis. Diwali fireworks, cooler conditions and smoke from crop-residue fires in Punjab and Haryana all contribute. After harvest, farmers set fire to leftover rice stalks to prepare fields for the next planting season, sending smoke toward New Delhi.
Pollution peaks in late October and November. Cooler air, weak winds and still atmospheric conditions keep pollutants from dispersing, while vehicle emissions, industrial activity, construction dust and crop burning add to the problem. The resulting dense haze can linger over the capital and nearby areas for days.
Why temporary measures fail
New Delhi's authorities have limited construction work and put curbs on diesel generators, and courts have sought limits on firecrackers. Severe pollution still returns every year. Shweta Narayan, who works on public health for the Global Climate and Health Alliance, said the response so far had been "knee-jerk" and "temporary". "A lot of interventions happen only because the government is pressured or pushed in a corner to do something," she said.
Environmentalists say preventing the yearly crisis will require lasting measures, including a shift to cleaner energy and tougher limits on vehicle emissions.
Authorities have not announced further action after the 9 November readings.
