Delhi AQI News Live: Delhi air pollution hits 4-year high on Diwali; PM2.5 peaks at 675

Delhi recorded its worst post-Diwali air quality in the last four years on Tuesday, with pollution levels spiking sharply the previous night as PM2.5 concentrations peaked at 675, while the BJP government attributed it to stubble burning in the AAP-ruled Punjab rather than firecrackers.

Delhi found itself enveloped in a thick grey haze and its air quality entered the "red zone" a day after Diwali, which saw cracker-bursting well beyond the two-hour limit (8 pm to 10 pm) set by the Supreme Court.

The city's 24-hour average Air Quality Index (AQI) on Diwali (Monday), reported at 4 pm, was in the "very poor" category at 345, compared to 330 in 2024, 218 in 2023, 312 in 2022 and 382 in 2021, according to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

Delhi recorded its worst air quality on Diwali in four years, with pollution levels spiking sharply at night as PM2.5 concentrations peaked at 675 — a peak not seen since 2021.

Delhi's 24-hour average AQI at 4 pm on Monday was in the 'very poor' category at 345.

In comparison, it was 330 in 2024, 218 in 2023, 312 in 2022, and 382 in 2021, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board.

Crackers lit up Delhi’s skies over Diwali, but the celebrations left the city and its suburbs blanketed in smog, pushing air pollution to a four-year high.

Air quality also saw its sharpest decline during Diwali in four years from the pre-Diwali period, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) jumping 49 percent on October 20–21 from the previous eight-day average, data released on October 21 showed. Read more

Heaping praise on the Chief Minister Rekha Gupta-led government, Bharatiya Janata Party MP Praveen Khandelwal on Tuesday emphasised that the Air Quality Index in Delhi is lower compared to previous years, even after the bursting of firecrackers on Diwali.

"We have seen that when AAP's government was in Delhi, the city's AQI used to cross 600. Today, Delhi's AQI is around 350. After 10 years of AAP's mismanagement, today Delhi's Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has taken such steps that even after firecrackers were burst in Delhi, the AQI level is lower compared to previous years... Next year, during these very days, Delhi will have a clean environment. This is our guarantee," Praveen Khandelwal said.

Delhi Home Minister Ashish Sood on Tuesday said those who burst firecrackers beyond 10 pm on Diwali behaved "irresponsibly." The minister, however, emphasised that bursting firecrackers was not the sole cause behind the spike in pollution in the national capital.

"Delhi people should have completely followed the Supreme Court guideline under which firecrackers were allowed to be burst till 10 pm. It was irresponsible behaviour by those who celebrated the festival by breaking the court's guideline of 10 pm," Sood told PTI The Supreme court recently lifted the ban on sale and use of green firecrackers, approved by National Environmental Engineering and Research Institute (NEERI) in Delhi-NCR.

“It’s shocking that Sanjay Singh and his colleagues are calling Diwali a sin and asking people to stop celebrating. They’re even targeting BJP leaders. Let’s be clear, Diwali is not a BJP festival; it’s a Sanatan Hindu festival. They are our opposition, so they can abuse us, but why insult a sacred tradition? The same party that failed for ten years is now blaming Diwali for pollution, a false narrative to appease a section of voters... These are the words of those who admire Aurangzeb and Akbar, who even put up the picture of Tipu Sultan in the Vidhan Sabha. Arvind ‘Khan’ Kejriwal is trying to hide his failures by defaming a festival sacred to millions," said Sirsa.

"For those who are asking us, why are we not getting cloud seeding done. I want to tell them that in cloud seeding, cloud comes first and then comes seeding. Seeding can only be done when there are clouds. The day there will be clouds, we will get seeding done and there will be rain as well," said Delhi Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa on cloud seeding.

"They (AAP) are deliberately bringing Diwali, Sanatana Dharma, and Hinduism into the picture... Arvind Kejriwal first deliberately banned firecrackers in Delhi to garner the votes of a particular community, to appease them. Since this morning, Arvind Kejriwal's entire team has been constantly cursing Diwali... Sanjay Singh and his colleagues have been tweeting since last night, asking to stop celebrating Diwali. Aam Aadmi Party president is cursing the BJP. Diwali isn't the BJP's festival. The BJP president and the BJP Chief Minister are being cursed. This isn't the BJP's festival. It's a Sanatan Hindu festival, and why are you cursing the festival? Why are you using words against the festival? But to say that BJP is celebrating Diwali, to say that BJP is bursting crackers like this, to say that BJP is doing such wrong things, I feel very embarrassed," said Sirsa.

"In 2020, the firecrackers in Diwali were going on. At that time, PM 2.5 was 414 before Diwali and 435 after Diwali. There was an increase of 21 points in the firecrackers. In 2021, there was an increase of 80 points. In 2024, when the firecrackers were banned, the AQI was 328 before Diwali and 360 after Diwali. 32 points increased when the firecrackers were banned. On the order of the Supreme Court and on the request of the Delhi government, we got permission for green firecrackers... Before Diwali, the AQI was 345, and after Diwali, the AQI was 356, according to the CPCB's Sameer App... Only 11 points increased when the firecrackers were allowed. Will you hold Diwali responsible for this? Will you hold the faith of all the Sanatanas and Hindus in Delhi accountable? What is the fault in this?," said Sirsa.

Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa claims that the Aam Aadmi Party forced Punjab farmers to burn crop stubble and presents videos of stubble burning from different regions, including Tarn Taran and Bathinda.

“The Aam Aadmi Party, which has run an incompetent government in Delhi for the last ten years, has been involved in questionable activities over the past four days... These visuals are from Tarn Taran and Bathinda, notice how people’s faces are covered. Farmers are being forced to burn stubble while concealing their identities," he said.

Former NITI Aayog CEO and G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant, on Tuesday, lashed out at Delhi’s pollution management, saying the national capital’s air quality “lies in shambles” and that the Supreme Court had “prioritised the right to burn crackers over the right to live and breathe.”

“Delhi’s air quality lies in shambles: 36 of 38 monitoring stations have hit the red zone, AQI is above 400 in key areas. The Hon. Supreme Court in its wisdom has prioritised the right to burn crackers over the right to live and breathe. Delhi remains among the world’s most polluted capitals. If Los Angeles, Beijing, and London can do it, why can’t Delhi?” Kant lashed out in a post on microblogging site X. Read more

BJP leader Amit Malviya on Tuesday blamed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-ruled Punjab government for the worsening air pollution levels in Delhi and the NCR, asserting that stubble burning, and not Diwali festivities, is the main cause behind the city’s deteriorating air quality.

In a post on X, Malviya alleged that the Punjab government’s failure to curb farm fires continues to choke Delhi each year.

“Unless Arvind Kejriwal-ruled Punjab stops burning stubble, Delhi and NCR will continue to choke. Stop blaming Deepawali for the sins of the Aam Aadmi Party — it's their smoke, not the festival's lamps or firecrackers, that darkens Delhi's skies. Their dark shadow still looms large over the Capital,” he wrote.

Delhi AQI News Live: Hazy skies, low visibility | Watch drone footage

Meanwhile, drone footage from Kashmiri Gate and Vasudev Ghat reveals hazy skies and low visibility.

The Air Quality Index continues to stay in the ‘very poor’ range, with GRAP-2 measures currently in force.

AAP President Saurabh Bharadwaj accuses the government of misleading the public, saying, "The government claimed it would tackle post-Diwali pollution through artificial rain. Did that happen? No. My question is, if it was possible, why wasn’t it done? Are they waiting for people to fall sick… It seems the government has ties with private hospitals…"

The Supreme Court, last week, had permitted the use of green crackers between 8 pm and 10 pm on Diwali, but many residents ignored the timing, continuing celebrations late into the night.

According to CPCB hourly data, AQI levels were already high at midnight (349) and 1 am (348).

Among eight major metropolitan cities, five reported AQI levels above 150, with Delhi experiencing the worst pollution.

Data from aqi.in showed the national capital’s AQI at 447 at 7:30 am on Tuesday, placing it in the ‘severe’ category and making it the most polluted metro in the country.

It should be mentioed here that AQI levels are classified as follows: 0–50 ‘good’, 51–100 ‘satisfactory’, 101–200 ‘moderate’, 201–300 ‘poor’, 301–400 ‘very poor’, and 401–500 ‘severe’.

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) reported the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) at 352 at 8 am, after readings of 346 at 5 am, 347 at 6 am, and 351 at 7 am, placing it firmly in the ‘very poor’ category.

The CPCB reported AQI levels in the ‘Very Poor’ range at key locations -- Chandni Chowk at 326, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium 318, Rohini 372, and Okhla Phase 2 353 -- this morning.

Delhi’s India Gate area recorded an AQI of 342 this morning, placing it in the ‘Very Poor’ category, according to the CPCB.

Another resident, out for his morning run, stated, "Everyone has a responsibility. If each individual acts responsibly, we can control the AQI levels. The government and agencies alone cannot solve this… There were clear directives to use green crackers, and following these rules would be a valuable service to society."

The morning after Diwali, a Delhi resident remarks, "Pollution hasn’t just spiked today; it has been worsening for years. While everyone blames politicians, people themselves contribute to the problem… You have firecrackers, but it’s your choice to burst them or not. Yet, later, they complain that the government isn’t taking action…"

The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has invoked Stage II of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) across Delhi-NCR after the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the region was recorded in the ‘poor’ category this morning.

Delhi’s air quality continues to remain in the ‘very poor’ category this morning, with several key monitoring stations reporting alarming levels of pollution.

According to data from the CPCB, Anand Vihar recorded an AQI of 358, ITO 347, Lodhi Road 329, and IGI Airport 313 — all falling in the ‘very poor’ range, indicating severely degraded air quality across the national capital.

By this morning, conditions have worsened further across the National Capital Region (NCR).

Ghaziabad recorded the highest pollution level at an AQI of 329, followed by Gurugram (340), Rohtak (345), and Hapur (314).

Other cities also reported alarming figures -- Greater Noida (285), Meerut (300), Faridabad (274), Ballabhgarh (296), and Manesar (301).

Fireworks lit up Delhi’s skies on Monday night as residents celebrated Diwali, but the festivities came at a cost, a sharp decline in air quality across the city.

By 10 pm, Delhi’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 344, falling in the ‘very poor’ category, according to official data. Out of 38 monitoring stations, 36 were marked in the ‘red zone’, while four recorded ‘severe’ pollution levels with AQI readings above 400.