New Delhi, Nov. 6 -- The national capital turned into an endless sea of glowing red tail-lights on Friday evening as unprecedented festive crowds brought vehicular movement to a grinding halt, triggering chaotic, kilometres-long bumper-to-bumper snarls across virtually every major artery of Delhi-NCR on the occasion of Dhanteras.

Marking the official kickoff of the Diwali festivities, lakhs of eager shoppers descended onto streets and commercial hubs to purchase gold, utensils, and electronics, completely overwhelming the city's road infrastructure and leaving motorists stranded for hours in deafening honks and crawling traffic.

Visuals from across the metropolis showed chaotic scenes with prominent commercial epicentres, including Conn...