India's capital region of Delhi has virtually shut down as air pollution hit "severe plus" levels, according to Indian government officials in its pollution control authority Delhi's Chief Minister Atishi Marlena said that all of northern India was in the middle of a "medical emergency.

Authorities in India’s capital shut schools, halted construction and banned non-essential trucks from entering the city on Monday after air pollution shot up to its worst level this season. Residents of New Delhi woke up to thick,

Delhi recorded air pollution more than 17 times above an acceptable level as worsening smog triggered curbs on trucking and shuttered construction sites and schools.