Delhi Smog Crisis: Diwali Pushes AQI to 413, Worst in 5 Years

(MENAFN) Choking smog blanketed Delhi on Monday after Diwali fireworks sent pollution levels climbing, leaving the Indian capital with its most polluted festival of lights in five years.

A pollution control authority bulletin issued late Monday afternoon put the city’s 24-hour Air Quality Index (AQI) at 344, still in the “very poor” category. Residents woke to a thick haze that cut visibility across several parts of the city.

A national news agency reported that Delhi’s average AQI on Diwali reached 376, the highest for the holiday in five years. Readings from the city government’s monitoring stations ranged from “very poor” to “severe” across the capital, with one station logging an AQI of 413.

Firecrackers kept going off until late Sunday night, despite restrictions from the Supreme Court, which had allowed only certified green crackers during designated hours. Officials said they had deployed anti-smog guns in response.

The same news agency said adverse weather conditions, vehicle emissions, Diwali celebrations and the peak stubble-burning season in neighboring states were all expected to worsen air quality.

Air pollution is a chronic problem for the city and intensifies in winter, when farmers in nearby states burn crop residue. Those emissions, combined with output from coal-fired power plants, industry and traffic, push the city’s air quality lower still.

MENAFN09112026000045017169ID1111934872