New Delhi, Oct. 17 -- A day after the Supreme Court opened a narrow window for regulated Diwali celebrations, Delhi's firecracker traders on Thursday responded with indifference to the government's two-day drive, with only 15 traders across the city applying for temporary licenses to legally sell firecrackers in the Capital, police said.

In markets from Sadar Bazar to Lajpat Nagar, vendors expressed that the new rule came too late. Firecrackers - green and otherwise - are already being sold in the open. The tepid response underscored how last-minute bureaucratic processes have done little to halt established market practices.

A spot check by HT across several markets on Wednesday showed the Supreme Court's guidelines being flouted in pl...