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Diwali (the festival of lights and crackers) is celebrated grandly, resulting in a significant drop in the city’s air quality. To study the impact of the judicial prohibition in Delhi to improve air quality, a comprehensive and comparative analysis was conducted over two consecutive years, namely 2015–2016 (when no significant regulations on the sale or usage of firecrackers were imposed) and 2017–2018 (when radically different regulations were implemented). Data on PM₁₀, PM_2.5, NO_x, and CO were analysed, and their trends and levels with various regulations in place were compared. In 2017, the concentrations of PM₁₀, PM_2.5, NO_x, and CO were reduced by 50%, 50%, 71%, and 64%, respectively, compared to 2016. However, in 2018, there was an increase of 32% in PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 concentrations, as well as a 25% increase in CO concentrations, with the exception of NOx, which decreased to 25% on Diwali …