Registering yet another intermittent surge, the concentration of pollutants in the city air reached deadly levels, with at least one instance of the Air Quality Index (AQI) rising above 300 in the last 24 hours.

Prolonged exposure led to breathing discomfort for people in the state capital through Tuesday and Wednesday, while medical practitioners advised those with underlying respiratory and cardiovascular disorders to stay indoors.

Those with suppressed immunity were also advised to take necessary precautions.

Meanwhile, road-building and other construction activities are continuing in the state capital, despite pollution officials repeatedly identifying construction and vehicular dust as one of the primary pollutants in the city.

Though the district administration is mulling a break in the traditional distribution of free firewood to the poor this winter, the burning of solid fuels, both wood and coal, continues unchecked at restaurants, dhabas, and wedding kitchens.

The traffic department and Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board (MPPCB) have yet to brief the media about the total number of pollution challans and Pollution Under Control (PUC) checks carried out by them.

There is no news of any significant pollution challans in any of the industrial areas that border the city. The transport department has yet to release reports on primary pollution-causing vehicles that contribute to the presence of toxic aerosols in breathable air.

These aerosols and gases, mixed with microscopic dust particles, constitute PM2.5, which enters the respiratory tracts of both humans and animals and can permeate into the bloodstream. Pollution kills nearly seven million people globally every year, according to World Health Organisation (WHO) statistics.Both Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and MPPCB officials claim that meteorological factors are responsible for the worsening air quality.