look news india
A major and painful accident has come to light late Saturday evening during the festival of Shardiya Navratri and Durga Puja in Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal. More than 35 people have been seriously injured in a sudden stampede amid the huge crowd of devotees who had gathered to see Maa Durga at a very popular and grand Durga Puja pandal in the city. The injured also include women, elderly people and small children. Due to Saturday being the weekend and the peak time of puja, the crowd gathered in the pandal premises many times more than the capacity. Due to the narrow barricading and sudden pushing and shoving, there was chaos and people started falling on each other. After this tragic accident, from the puja pandals of Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, to Kolkata and across the country, there is panic regarding security and crowd management.
According to eyewitnesses and local sources, the accident occurred in the evening when thousands of people started moving together at the entrance of the pandal for Maha Aarti and special darshan. There was a queue of people since afternoon to see the grand theme and lighting of the pandal. As soon as the barricade of the main Darshan Mandap was opened, the heavy pressure of the crowd coming from behind fell on the people standing in front. Meanwhile, some women and children lost their balance and fell on the ground. Instead of saving them, the uncontrollable crowd coming from behind tried to move forward, due to which a stampede-like situation was created within a few seconds. There was screams all around and people started running here and there to save their lives, due to which the situation became more dire.
As soon as information about the incident was received, Kolkata Police personnel deployed at the pandal, Rapid Action Force (RAF) and ambulances reached the spot after forming a green corridor. Local volunteers and police were prompt in pulling out the fallen people and after providing first aid, admitted them to nearby medical colleges and government hospitals.
According to hospital sources, out of more than 35 people injured, 8 to 10 have been kept in the intensive care unit with fractures, head injuries and suffocation. A special team of doctors is monitoring the injured. It is a matter of relief that due to the prompt intervention of the administration, the situation was controlled within a short time and no casualties have been confirmed, although the condition of many people remains critical.
Immediately after the accident, senior officers of Kolkata Police, Joint Commissioner of Police and disaster management teams reached the spot and took charge. As a precautionary measure, a temporary ban was imposed on the entry of common devotees into the concerned puja pandal and the entire premises was evacuated and controlled.
Kolkata Police Commissioner has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident. Police are investigating whether the puja committee allowed more people inside than the sanctioned capacity and whether the guidelines for entry and exit gates were strictly followed or not. Traffic has been diverted by installing additional barricades on all routes around the pandal.
Following the incident, Kolkata Police and the State Home Department have issued an emergency security advisory for all large and theme-based Durga Puja committees across the city:
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Widening of entry and exit points: All big pandals have been immediately instructed to keep the exit gates completely open so that in case of any emergency, people can go out without any hindrance.
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Crowd Regulation and Holding Area: Adequate open holding areas should be created outside the main pavilion and darshan should be allowed in small batches instead of leaving people together in queues.
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Real-time surveillance from CCTV and drones: The crowd density will be monitored live through drone cameras inside the pandals and on the approach roads, so that the police can intervene before the pressure increases anywhere.
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Additional Volunteers and Medical Booths: Instructions have been reiterated to mandatorily deploy a team of doctors, first aid booth and ambulance 24 hours in every major puja pandal.
The state government and district administration have appealed to the common citizens and devotees to maintain peace and not pay attention to any kind of unconfirmed social media rumours. To help the families of the injured, a special help desk has been set up in the respective hospitals. The administration has requested the devotees to completely follow the instructions of the security personnel while visiting the pandals, avoid taking selfies on narrow paths and take special care of children and the elderly so that any other untoward incident can be avoided in the festive atmosphere.