80% Of Post-Diwali Pollution In Delhi Caused By Firecrackers: Study

Delhi's post-Diwali air pollution spike had a clear and unusually concentrated source: Firecrackers. Emissions from fireworks accounted for more than 80 per cent of the capital's pollution load on Monday, a day after Diwali, according to estimates by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM).

The high numbers maybe contested, but the toxic haze that covered the national capital and its neighbouring areas after Diwali highlighted how a few hours of fireworks can dramatically alter the composition of an already polluted atmosphere.A separate IITM source-apportionment assessment estimated that firecrackers contributed 71.1 per cent of Delhi's PM2.5 concentration between 1 am and 9 am on November 9. IITM dashboard shows huge spike in PM2.5 level on Monday, a day after Diwali.Photo Credit: ews.tropmet.res.inThe IITM assessment also reveals how dramatically the pollution mix changed around Diwali.

Firecrackers accounted for 43.4 per cent of PM2.5 during the corresponding hours on November 8, compared to just 5.6 per cent on November 7.