Thick smog blankets Delhi on Deepavali night, AQI at 20 stations ‘severe’
The city’s air quality remained in the very poor category, with the instantaneous air quality index (AQI) recorded at 371 at 7 pm, close to the strict threshold. File | Photo credit: Sushil Kumar Verma
A smoky haze hovered over Delhi on Deepavali night, blurring street lights and obscuring neighborhoods as celebrations intensified in the capital, pushing air quality at 20 monitoring stations into the “severe” category, with an overall air quality index of 371 at 10 p.m.
As the evening wore on, the haze thickened and smoke from firecrackers hung over roads and residential areas. The smell of burnt biscuits hung in the air, while visibility dropped in several parts of the capital and residents reported breathing difficulties.
Despite restrictions on exploding firecrackers, several parts of Delhi continued to witness their use on Sunday evening (November 8, 2026), with reports of fireworks from areas including Pitampura, Burari, Mayur Vihar and parts of Lutyens’ Delhi.
Ahead of Deepavali, the Delhi government has asked people to follow the Supreme Court’s directions regarding the sale and use of green firecrackers.
The District Magistrate (East) has by order allowed the bursting of green firecrackers only on November 7 and 8 between 6:00 am to 7:00 am and 8:00 pm and 10:00 pm.
Residents reported firecrackers being fired in outer Delhi’s Pitampura and Burari, with the intensity being particularly high in Burari. Similar reports came from Mayur Vihar, while people in Bishambardas Marg and Lutyens’ Delhi areas said fireworks continued, though the intensity had reduced slightly.
Of the 59 monitoring stations, 19 were in the “severe” category at 7 p.m., seven were in the “bad” category, and the remaining 33 were in the “very bad” category. Jahangirpuri recorded the highest AQI at 460.
The city’s average AQI reading for the day settled at 376 in the “very poor” category, compared with 369 on Saturday, amid a layer of smog and reduced visibility.
The court banned bursting of firecrackers within 300 meters of hospitals, nursing homes, health centres, retirement homes, educational institutions and other notified silence zones.
Only green firecrackers certified by CSIR-NEERI have been allowed for sale, with the administration directing that they be sold exclusively at places designated by the Delhi Police. The administration also announced joint patrolling and enforcement teams comprising district officials and Delhi Police to check unauthorized sale and use of banned firecrackers.
Meanwhile, the Air Quality Early Warning System (EWS) has predicted that Delhi’s air quality is likely to slip into the ‘severe’ category from November 9 and remain there for the next few days.
Weather and air quality experts attribute the expected deterioration to adverse weather conditions, vehicular emissions, Deepavali celebrations and the ongoing peak stubble burning season in neighboring states.
PM2.5 remained the predominant pollutant in the state capital on Sunday (November 8, 2026), with emissions from firecrackers adding to particulate matter levels.
Published – 8 Nov 2026 22:48 IST