A tragic stampede at New Delhi Railway Station on Saturday night resulted in the deaths of 18 passengers, including 11 women and five children and left several others injured, drawing widespread condemnation from the public and opposition leaders. The incident has raised serious concerns over railway safety and crowd management, especially amid the rush of devotees traveling for the MahaKumbh pilgrimage.
Chaos Erupts Due to Delayed Trains and Overcrowding
Authorities have attributed the stampede to massive overcrowding on platforms 12, 13, and 14 due to delayed trains and an overwhelming number of passengers trying to board. Officials confirmed that platforms 13 and 14 were already packed with passengers waiting for the Swatantrata Senani Express and Bhubaneswar Rajdhani Express when the situation worsened. The congestion escalated further when the Prayagraj Express, a special train for the MahaKumbh, was scheduled to depart from platform 14 at 10:10 pm.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Railways) KPS Malhotra explained that due to the weekend, a large number of devotees were headed to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh, leading to an unprecedented surge in passengers between 9 and 10 pm. The crowd grew further when two other trains—Swatantrata Senani Express and Bhubaneswar Rajdhani Express—were delayed.
The Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Northern Railway, Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, stated that the immediate cause of the stampede was a passenger slipping on the stairs between platforms 14 and 15. This triggered a domino effect, causing several passengers behind him to fall, leading to the deadly chaos.
Opposition Criticizes Government Response
The Opposition was quick to condemn the government’s handling of the situation, questioning the safety of travelers and demanding accountability from Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. Critics argued that the authorities should have anticipated the crowd surge and implemented proper measures to prevent such a disaster.
Eyewitnesses at the station reported that authorities failed to act in time despite being aware of the growing congestion. Many passengers alleged that security personnel did little to regulate the crowd, and no proactive crowd control measures were taken before the stampede occurred.
Immediate Government Response and Investigation
Following the tragedy, security at the New Delhi Railway Station was significantly increased on Sunday. Additional teams from the Government Railway Police (GRP) and Railway Protection Force (RPF) were deployed to manage the rush. Officials also implemented loudspeaker announcements to inform passengers about train schedules in an attempt to prevent further overcrowding.
The Ministry of Railways announced that four special trains had been operated on Saturday, with five more scheduled to facilitate the movement of Maha Kumbh devotees. Additionally, a high-level committee has been set up to investigate the incident and determine accountability.
Delhi Police released a list of the 18 deceased on Sunday morning and confirmed that inquest proceedings were underway. The victims have been identified as Aaha Devi, 79; Pinky Devi, 41; Sheela Devi, 50; Vyom, 25; Poonam Devi, 40; Lalita Devi, 35; Suruchi, 11; Krishna Devi, 40; Vijay Sah, 15; Neeraj, 12; Shanti Devi, 40; Pooja Kumar, 8; Sangeeta Malik, 34; Poonam, 34; Mamta Jha, 40; Riya Singh, 7; Baby Kumari, 24; Manoj, 47.
Manbilas Singh is a talented writer and journalist who focuses on the finer details in every story and values integrity above everything. A self-proclaimed sleuth, he strives to expose the fine print behind seemingly mundane activities and aims to uncover the truth that is hidden from the general public. In his time away from work, he is a music aficionado and a nerd who revels in video & board games, books and Formula 1.
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