Hyderabad, Nov. 10 -- Despite the Supreme Court ordering that only green firecrackers be burst during Diwali, just days before the festive season began, Delhi was enveloped in a smog so terrible that it was the worst in the past five years. This is not the first time the apex court laid down the rules. And yet, the people of the national capital went against their own health interests. That is the tragedy: both the disregard for the court and for their own health.

We need to wait and see how the Supreme Court deals with this large-scale defiance of its orders, and logically speaking, such flouting could well be a cause for contempt. Since it has been widespread in the Delhi region, who would the contemners be? For their own good health, ...