NEW DELHI, Nov 1, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - India's capital New Delhi was wreathed in
poisonous smog Friday, with air pollution worsening after a fireworks ban was
widely flouted for raucous celebrations for the Hindu festival of lights,
Diwali.

New Delhi's traffic-clogged streets are home to more than 30 million people,
and the city is regularly ranked as one of the most polluted urban areas on
the planet.

The city is blanketed in cancer-causing acrid smog each year, primarily
blamed on stubble burning by farmers in neighbouring regions to clear their
fields for ploughing, as well as factories and traffic fumes.

But air worsened Friday after a thunderous night of firecrackers lit as part
of Diwali celebrations, despite city authorities last month banning their
sale and use.

- 'Stilted response' -

City police had seized nearly two tonnes of fireworks before Diwali, but the
crackers remained readily available for sale in neighbouring states.

Many residents celebrated at home, holding a family meal and lighting small
candles in praise of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi and symbolising the victory of
light over darkness.

Others launched firework rockets and booming crackers, rocking the densely
packed city throughout the night.

Police are often reluctant to act against violators, given the strong
religious sentiments attached to the crackers by Hindu devotees.

Critics say arguments between rival politicians heading neighbouring states -
- as well as between central and state-level authorities -- have compounded
the problem.

India's Supreme Court last month ruled that clean air was a fundamental human
right, ordering both the central government and state-level authorities to
take action.

"Delhi's toxic air is killing us softly with its smog," the Times of India
wrote in an editorial last week, as the winter pollution returned.

"It is nothing new, but what doesn't cease to amaze, year after year, is the
state's stilted response."

Levels of fine particulate matter -- dangerous microparticles known as PM2.5
pollutants that enter the bloodstream through the lungs -- surged to more
than 23 times the World Health Organization recommended daily maximum.

Soon after dawn, pollutant levels topped 345 micrograms per cubic metre,
according to monitoring firm IQAir, which listed air in the sprawling
megacity as "hazardous".

It listed New Delhi as worst in the world, just above smoke-choked Lahore in
neighbouring Pakistan, 400 kilometres (250 miles) to the northeast.

The New Delhi government has previously sought to cut pollution by
restricting vehicle traffic, including a scheme that only allowed cars with
odd or even number licence plates to travel on alternate days.

Authorities have also imposed seasonal bans on construction work and on
diesel-powered vehicles from entering the city.