Diwali fireworks haze pushes Indian capital's air quality to severe

A man wearing a mask runs past the India Gate on a smoggy morning in New Delhi, India, October 28, 2019 REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Air pollution in some parts of the Indian capital deteriorated early on Monday to the worst recorded level, officials said, a day after revellers set off fireworks to mark Diwali in celebrations that were more subdued than in previous years.

The air quality index, which measures the concentration of poisonous particulate matter, touched 500 in several parts of Delhi, including the international airport, in the early hours of Monday, the maximum recorded by the government's Central Pollution Control Board.