India, Nov. 7 -- The Supreme Court's directions on firecrackers left little room for ambiguity. Only certified green crackers could be sold at designated locations across Delhi-NCR from November 4 to 6. Their use was restricted to two hours each in the morning, between 6am and 7am, and in the evening, between 8pm and 10pm, on November 7 and 8. A blanket ban would return from November 9.

Yet, the sights and sounds in Delhi on Friday, appear to suggest that these rules only exist on paper.

From unlicensed street vendors openly selling fireworks in Old Delhi markets to neighbourhoods echoing with explosions a day before the permitted bursting window began, violations were evident across the Capital.

When HT visited markets in Old Delhi, t...