Delhi chokes as air quality gets 'hazardous', Taj Mahal gets air purifier

Delhi's 20 million people spluttered with stinging eyes in the worst pollution in three years as smog levels exceeded those of Beijing by more than three times. Authorities parked a van with an air purifier near the Taj Mahal - the iconic 17th-century marble mausoleum 250 kilometres (150 miles) south of Delhi - in a bid to clean the air in its surrounds.

With the pollution causing a rush of respiratory complaints at hospitals and the diversion of 37 flights on Sunday, a new law came into effect restricting cars from the capital's roads to alternative days

More than 600 police teams were deployed at road intersections in the capital with the power to hand out fines of 4,000 rupees (nearly $60) to transgressors.