India, Oct. 16 -- The city's roads turned into long stretches of unmoving vehicles on Wednesday, with commuters stuck for hours amid one of the worst traffic days of the festive season.

Massive congestion was reported across central, south, east, northwest, outer and outer-north Delhi. Several arterial roads saw bumper-to-bumper movement lasting more than half an hour, forcing many to abandon schedules and meetings.

A senior police officer said the chaos was expected. "The heavy traffic is a result of the festive rush and people returning to the city for the holidays," he said.

"We have deployed additional staff and are monitoring movement across key junctions," he added.

Commuters took to social media to vent their frustration. "Delh...