Delhi records highest pollution on Diwali eve in a decade as smoke and calm winds trap smog

Severe Pollution Surge

Delhi woke up to Sunday facing its most polluted festival eve in ten years, driven by a combination of stubble burning, calm winds, and early firecracker use. The air quality index recorded at 4 pm on Saturday stood at 369, placing it in the very poor category on the Central Pollution Control Board scale and marking the highest pre-Diwali reading since 2016.

Contributing Factors

Farm fires in Punjab and Haryana reached a seasonal high on Saturday, with an Isro satellite counting 415 fire pixels. Ground winds fell calm after sunset, and within two hours of the first legal firecracker window opening at 8 pm, pollution levels spiked significantly across the capital. Residential areas saw dramatic jumps, with Punjabi Bagh recording PM2.5 levels climbing from 208 to 593 within a single hour, and Mundka reaching 718.

Enforcement Challenges

The surge occurred despite rules set by the Supreme Court, which permitted certified green crackers for limited hours. The Delhi Police formed over 250 special enforcement teams, but officers conceded that full compliance is nearly impossible due to the difficulty of distinguishing green crackers from conventional ones and covering the entire city. Reporters found conventional crackers and boxes lacking mandatory QR codes openly available in markets like Chandni Chowk and Sadar Bazaar.

Context

The Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology forecasts that the air quality index will climb past 400 into the severe category by Monday morning. Delhi's annual winter pollution crisis is regularly intensified by agricultural stubble burning in neighbouring states, dropping temperatures, and low wind speeds that trap heavy particulate matter close to the ground.