Toxic smog blankets New Delhi, disrupting travel and plunging air quality to hazardous levels

NEW DELHI (AP) — Dense toxic smog blanketed India’s national capital Monday, pushing air pollution levels to their worst levels in weeks, disrupting travel and causing authorities to impose the strictest containment measures.

More than 40 flights were cancelled and several dozens delayed. Over 50 trains arriving and departing from New Delhi were delayed by several hours, authorities said.

Healthcare experts warned residents to avoid all outdoor activities as hospitals reported an influx of patients with breathing difficulties and eye irritation.

“New Delhi is a gas chamber right now. Air purifiers can help only a bit, so it's high time the government comes up with some permanent solutions” said Naresh Dang, a physician at Max Healthcare.

Delhi’s air pollution levels have remained at what the federal government calls a “severe” level for the last two days, which the government says can cause respiratory effects to healthy people and seriously affect the health of people with heart or lung disease.

On Sunday, official index readings were over 450 at several monitoring stations, up from 430 on Saturday and the highest so far this winter season, as per data from Central Pollution Control Board. On Monday, it stood at 449. Readings below 50 are considered good. During periods of severe air pollution, the government advises people to avoid going outdoors as much as possible and wear N95 masks when going outside. Children, pregnant women, elderly and people with pre-existing respiratory or cardiovascular conditions are at higher risk and officials advise them to be extra cautious.

“I have never seen this kind of pollution ever. Last year I came to Delhi, it was polluted. This year it is more polluted. I can feel the smoke while I breathe the air,” said Tiam Patel, a tourist.

To stem pollution, Indian authorities have banned construction activities and restricted use of diesel generators and cars. Water sprinklers have been deployed to control the haze. Schools and offices are allowing many students and workers to stay home.

But environmentalists say that the country's air pollution crisis requires long-term changes.

New Delhi and its surrounding region, home to more than 30 million people, routinely rank among the world’s most polluted. India has six of the world's 10 most polluted cities, and New Delhi is the most polluted national capital, according to a report from Switzerland-based air quality monitoring database IQAir earlier this year.

Air quality worsens in New Delhi every winter as farmers burn crop residue in nearby states and cooler temperatures trap the smoke, which mixes with pollution from vehicles, construction activity and industrial emissions. Pollution levels often reach 20 times higher than the World Health Organization’s safe limit.

But Vimlendu Jha, a Delhi based environmentalist, said that the air is not healthy even at other times of year.

“Delhi’s air doesn’t get cleaner at all, we only see it visibly from October to December, but the reality is that it remains polluted through the year,” he said.

Earlier this month, residents of New Delhi staged protests to express frustration and anger about the government's failure to address pollution.

A study last year by medical journal Lancet linked long term exposure to polluted air to 1.5 million additional deaths every year in India.

“Deaths related to air pollution are not being counted. And the reason why its not being counted is because there are no systematic mechanisms to do so,” said Shweta Narayan, a campaign lead at the Global Climate and Health Alliance.

Indian authorities in October carried out a controversial cloud-seeding experiment over smog-choked New Delhi to induce rainfall and clear the city’s toxic air. The experiment ended without rainfall.

Arasu reported from Bengaluru, India. AP video journalist Piyush Nagpal contributed to the report.

A man pushes a cycle cart in a smog-covered morning in New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Piyush Nagpal)

People walk through a public park in a dense smog-covered morning in New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo)

Traffic moves through dense smog in the morning in New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo)

People walk in a smog-covered morning in New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Piyush Nagpal)

A quarterly survey of major Japanese manufacturers released Monday shows business sentiment improving to its best level in four years, even after President Trump raised tariffs on goods from the U.S. ally to a baseline level of 15%.

The Bank of Japan is bound to take the results of its quarterly “tankan” survey into account during a policy meeting this week, when it is expected to raise its benchmark interest rate. Analysts said the stronger results may sway the BOJ toward pressing ahead with a 0.25 percentage point rate hike that will take the key rate to 0.75%.

That expectation hit the price of bitcoin early Monday, as it dipped below $88,000 from about $92,000. Higher rates would likely lead Japanese investors to shift funds back home, sapping demand for cryptocurrencies.

While the U.S. Federal Reserve has been trimming rates to counter a weak jobs market, Japan’s central bank is moving in the other direction as it contends with inflation and a weak currency. The economy contracted at an annualized rate of 2.3% in July-September.

Still, the BOJ survey showed the measure of major manufacturers expressing optimism rose to 15 from 14 in the last quarter, the highest level in four years. The index shows the percentage of companies reporting positive conditions minus the percentage reporting unfavorable ones.

The measure of sentiment for all companies rose to 17 from 15, it said.

The survey “struck all the right notes from the Bank of Japan's perspective,” Abhijit Surya of Capital Economics said in a report. “It showed that business conditions are improving, profit margins remain elevated and firms are upbeat about their investment intentions.”

The latest deal between Japan and the Trump administration set tariffs on its exports to the U.S. at 15%, down from an earlier plan for a 25% tariff. To win the agreement, among other things Japan promised to invest $550 billion in the United States.

While the BOJ's overall survey showed improvement, forecasts for the next quarter were less positive, and businesses expected inflation to remain at 2.4%, above the central bank's target range.

The Bank of Japan has kept its key interest rate near or below zero for years, trying to spur faster economic growth by keeping borrowing costs very low.

Its policymaking has been complicated by the fact that Japan's population is shrinking and aging rapidly. That has caused labor shortages that have only slowly pushed wages higher. That should lead consumers to spend more, but increases in income have lagged behind inflation, denting their appetite for spending.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has pledged, as have her predecessors, to revive the economy. Last month, her cabinet approved a 21.3 trillion yen ($135.4 billion) stimulus package to spur growth through expansionary government spending and relieve the impact of higher prices.

A general view of a container port seen from a helicopter in Tokyo, on Oct. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

FILE - A Japanese flag flutters at the Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo on July 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama, File)