Diwali celebrations left Lucknowites gasping for breath with alarmingly high air pollution levels, more than double compared to last year. The silver lining, however, was a decline in noise levels this year as compared to 2015.

According to UP Pollution Control Board officials, increase in air pollution but decline in noise levels indicated people have shifted from sound producing fireworks to those which emit light. The increase in air pollution caused smog on Diwali night which continued till morning.

The air quality survey conducted by the CSIR lab, the Indian Institute of Toxicology and Research (IITR), concentration of particulate matter (PM)-the hazardous solid and liquid particles suspended in the air -levels shot up significantly.