At least 17 people, including three children, died and dozens of others were injured in an incident like a stampede at New Delhi railway station late on Saturday night. The injured were admitted to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital and Lady Harding Medical College for treatment. Most of those who lose their lives in the stampede are women. The huge crowd of passengers going to Prayagraj Mahakumbh at New Delhi railway station had started growing from the evening itself, yet the administration did not improve the arrangements in time and manage the crowd.
Many eyewitnesses told Aaj Tak that there was a lot of crowd on all the platforms of the station, but the situation was worse on platform numbers 12, 13, 14 and 15. According to eyewitnesses, the stampede situation arose due to the announcement of repeatedly changing the platform numbers by the Railways. Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Railways, KPS Malhotra said that Prayagraj Express was standing on platform number 14. A large crowd of passengers was present on the platform to catch this train. The freedom fighter Express and Bhubaneswar capital were running late. Passengers of these trains were also present at platform numbers 12, 13 and 14.
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1500 general general tickets sold every hour on NDLS
DCP Malhotra said, ‘According to the information, the Railways sold 1500 general tickets every hour at New Delhi station. This is why the crowd became uncontrollable. The escalator of platform number 14 and platform number 16 had a stampede -like situation. Indian Railways rejected the stampede as a rumor and described the situation at New Delhi railway station as a ‘stampede -like situation’. However, the Railways later confirmed that unknown number of people were injured and they were taken to the hospital. The deaths were confirmed by LNJP Hospital, where the injured were taken for treatment.
Stampede not on platforms, but on stairs
An eyewitness who lost his mother in the incident at New Delhi railway station said that the stampede started on the stairs landing on the platforms, not on the platforms. Eyewitness said, ‘I was going to Chhapra with my family. We were coming down the stairs and the platform in front of us looked normal. There was no sign of any kind of disorder. Suddenly the crowd gathered on the stairs and a large number of people started coming down. My mother and many women fell, while others passed away trampling them. Other eyewitnesses said that many passengers had reached the platform without tickets to climb in trains going to Prayagraj Mahakumbh.
Also read: ‘Stay buried in the crowd, felt suffocating …’, Passengers told the dreadful scene of New Delhi railway station
How to reach the platform without tickets?
Many eyewitnesses complained that they had a confirmed ticket, but they could not sit in the train. People without tickets or general tickets had crowded the doors of the train. Many passengers’ goods were also stolen in the crowd. Leave the general and the sleeper, AC coaches also did not have a place to set foot. The passengers who had a confirmed ticket also got down, because the coach was suffocating due to the huge crowd. To reduce the crowd, the Railways run special trains from 12.30 pm. Many people did not have tickets. He said that he entered the platform. They wanted to buy tickets, but tickets were not available in most trains.
Railway disorder responsible for stampede?
A woman who had won a seat in a special train, but did not have a ticket, she said that when TT comes, I will buy tickets. He blamed the crowd behind not being able to take the ticket. Many other people sitting in special trains also said the same thing. Many passengers climbed into the train in the hope that they would buy tickets from TT. They entered the station premises without platform tickets, because there was no inquiry or check check at the entry points. Everyone said that they entered inside with the crowd and no one stopped them or tested them. It is clear that the chaos and omission of the railway administration was responsible for the stampede at New Delhi station.
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