India, Oct. 18 -- The festive rush ahead of Diwali brought Delhi-NCR to a standstill on Friday evening, as massive traffic jams stretched across key arterial roads and market areas.

From ITO and Moolchand Flyover to Chanakyapuri, Teen Murti Marg, and the Delhi-Gurugram Motorway, commuters were left stranded for hours amid long queues of vehicles crawling at a snail's pace.

The situation was no better in Gurugram, where IFFCO Chowk and the connecting roads to Delhi witnessed bumper-to-bumper traffic during peak hours. Google Maps showed red zones across most of the capital, with short 12-13 km commutes taking over an hour to complete.

The gridlock began building up from late afternoon as people headed out for Dhanteras and Diwali shoppi...