Millions of Indians set a new world record celebrating Diwali as worries about air pollution rise

By BISWAJEET BANERJEE
Associated Press

LUCKNOW, India (AP) — Millions of Indians are celebrating Diwali, the Hindu festival of light, with a new Guinness World Record number of bright earthen oil lamps as concerns about air pollution soared in the South Asian country. Devotees lit over 2.22 million lamps and kept them burning for 45 minutes as Hindu religious hymns filled the air at the banks of the river at the banks of Saryu River in the northern city of Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh state, as people marked the national festival on Sunday. The celebrations came as “hazardous” levels were recorded on the air quality index last week. New Delhi tops the list almost annually among the Indian cities with poor air quality.