Delhi recorded hazardous pollution levels two days after Diwali, with an air quality index reaching 353 in the very poor range on Wednesday. Nearby cities suffered worse conditions as Dharuhera hit 379 and Rohtak measured 349, while Noida and Ghaziabad exceeded 320. Health officials blamed fireworks from festival celebrations, combined with still weather and traffic exhaust, for the dangerous concentration of tiny lung-damaging particles.
Air quality managers ordered emergency restrictions that halt construction work and shut polluting factories across the capital region. Northern cities from Amritsar to Kanpur showed poor readings, while southern locations like Shillong and Puducherry maintained clean air. Doctors warned that breathing current pollution is equivalent to smoking multiple cigarettes daily and harms even healthy people. Experts predict conditions will worsen as winter arrives and farmers begin burning crop stubble in the coming weeks.
