New Delhi, Sept. 21 -- The lead-up to Navratri has already left much of Delhi sleepless, as late-night processions blare devotional music through loudspeakers and boom boxes, rattling homes and choking major roads. On both Friday and Saturday nights, residents across south Delhi and stretches of eastern and central Delhi reported thundering music, flashing disco lights mounted on trucks, and noise that kept them awake well past midnight. The worst-hit areas included neighbourhoods around Mathura Road, Kalkaji, Nehru Place, parts of east Delhi and adjoining localities, where residents said the noise levels remained unchecked deep into the night. "Our windows shook from the music. Elderly residents and children are the worst affected. We already face endless traffic jams during festivals, and now noise," said Rajbir Singh, a resident of Kalkaji. Noise regulations, however, leave little room for such disruption. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) permits a maximum of 55 decibels in residential areas during the day and 45 decibels at night. Residents said the amplified sound systems frequently exceeded 80-90 decibels, well above legal limits. For hospitals and other "silent zones," the limits are even lower-50 dB(A) during the day and 40 dB(A) at night-but processions near Mathura Road, home to several hospitals, made no exceptions. "Along the entire stretch from Noida Link Road to Akshardham temple and beyond, several processions with trucks fitted with massive sound systems occupied half the road while traffic crawled by," said R. Venkat, a resident of Mayur Vihar Phase 1. Residents recalled that last year, the Delhi Police had intervened. "This year, no such action is visible yet," said Triveni Mahajan, secretary of the Maharani Bagh residents' association. A senior police officer, who requested anonymity, said, "It has now become a trend for teenagers to mount giant speakers on trucks and play music at deafening levels. We deploy personnel along border entry points to monitor processions. When groups do not comply, our staff disconnects the power supply to their systems," the officer said....