Pollution levels in the National Capital Region – including Delhi, Gurgaon and Noida – have reached drastic levels. Pollutants are far above the permissible levels with PM 2.5 at 355 and PM 10 at 482. The forecast is currently poor, though experts suggest that levels will go down after Monday when north-westerly rains reach Delhi.

On Sunday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal addressed an emergency cabinet meeting. In a press conference (video below), he outlined the measures that needed to be taken, called Delhi a "toxic gas chamber", said school would remain shut for three days, and that the odd-even policy could be reimplemented if needed.

Over the past week, since Diwali, Delhi residents have been taking to social media to document smog levels in their nearby vicinity. Over time, this has shown no signs of abating. A protest was held at Jantar Mantar on Sunday and citizens continue to share alarming visuals of a pollution-filled capital. Perhaps the most distressing images of the lot are captured by travellers to Delhi from their planes.

Here's what some citizens have documented.

A report from NASA pointed to crop-burning in nearby areas of Punjab as a reason for the increased pollution. An article in The New York Times stated that 32 million tonnes of straw is burnt. Using the data put out by the space agency, a GIF was created to visualise the crop burning in Punjab in October.

Sales of masks and air-purifiers have skyrocketed over the past few weeks, and companies promptly took to social media to boost business.

There was a little room for humour also. An old Bollywood song predicted how Delhi residents are feeling right now.

Here's an invention that could work. Last year, designer Dan Rosegaarde unveiled the world's largest air purifier in Rotterdam, Netherlands. It's 23 feet tall and converts smog to gem stones. In an hour, the device scrubs 30,000 cubic feet of air for pollution. In September, the purifier was installed in the city that gives competition to New Delhi for most polluted city in the world – Beijing, China. Here's a video of the purifier in action.

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