Diwali may have been quieter this year, but toxic fumes from firecrackers pushed air pollution levels in the city way above the permissible limits on all three days of the festival.
According to initial data obtained from the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) for the Ambient Air Quality monitoring station at Bandra, the average respirable suspended particulate matter (RSPM) levels in the area on October 26 were 358 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m3). This is more than three times the permissible limit of 100 µg/m3. In fact, this is the second highest value of RSPM recorded on Lakshmi pooja in Bandra from 2007 to 2011.