A fatal stampede occurred at the New Delhi railway station on Saturday (15th February) night leaving 18 people dead, including 11 women and 4 children. The stampede reportedly happened between 9 and 10 pm because of crowding of passengers due to delayed trains.
The crowd of passengers included a large number of devotees heading to attend the Mahakumbh Mela in Prayagraj. The injured were taken to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narain Hospital.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Railway, KPS Malhitra, explained the reason for the stampede as the delayed schedule of two trains that led to a massive number of passengers gathering at the platforms.
“When the Prayagraj Express was standing at platforms no. 14, a lot of public was present at the platform. Swatantra Senani Express and Bhubaneshwar Rajdhani were delayed and passengers of these trains were also present at platform no. 12, 13 and 14. As per the information, 1500 general tickets were sold – that’s why the crowd became uncontrollable,” the DCP said.
Expressing grief on the stampede, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that a high-level inquiry has been ordered into the incident to be conducted by a two-member committee.
High-level inquiry ordered https://t.co/Egaifp5Onx
— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) February 15, 2025
As soon as the stampede happened, teams of Delhi Police and Railway Police Force (RPF) swung into action and the situation was brought under control. Four special trains were deployed at the railway station to evacuate the passengers as confirmed by the Railway Minister.
4 special trains to evacuate this unprecedented sudden rush at NDLS. The rush has now reduced.
— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) February 15, 2025
What happened at the platform
As per reports, delay in the schedule of two trains – Swatantra Senani and Bhubaneswar Rajdhani led to crowds at platform number 13 and 14 of the New Delhi Railway station. As the passengers of the delayed trains were already waiting at the platforms, the arrival of the Prayagraj Express, a special train for Mahakumbh, at platform number 16 was announced. The passengers waiting at the platform started gathering to board the Prayagraj Express which resulted in an unmanageable crowd at the platform.
#WATCH | Huge crowd of passengers witnessed at platform number 12 of New Delhi Railway Station. pic.twitter.com/wbHceJiLiD
— ANI (@ANI) February 15, 2025
According to the report of an immediate inquiry ordered into the into the incident, the delay in the schedule of two trains, the announcement of a special train to Prayagraj and the unexpected surge in the sales tickets led to the tragic incident.
Besides, the railway authorities were issuing 1500 general tickets every hour for Prayagraj. “Considering the increasing crowds and continuous ticket sales, at around 10 pm, the railways authorities announced a special train to Prayagraj from platform 16. Upon hearing this announcement, the passengers with general tickets, who were waiting on platform 14 rushed towards 16 by crossing the foot overbridge. In doing so, they trampled over passengers who were sitting on the overbridge, while a person also slipped and fell, which led to the stampede,” the inquiry report said.
Nothern Railway’s Chief Public Relations Officer, Himanshu Shekar Upadhyay said that stampede occurred as some passengers slipped and fell on the other passengers due to heavy crowd.
“At the time of the incident, the Magadh Express heading to Patna was standing on platform 14, while the Jammu-bound Uttar Sampark Kranti was on platform 15. A passenger coming from 14 to 15 slipped and fell on the stairs, and many passengers standing behind him were hit. The stampede occurred due to this. This is being investigated by a high-level committee,” he said.
Delhi police launches Probe into the stampede
An investigation has been launched into the stampede by the Delhi Police. The police are examining the CCTV footage to find out the causes that led to the tragedy. “Our main target is to investigate the main cause which caused the stampede. We will collect all data to ascertain what exactly happened before the tragedy unfolded,” the police said.
In the aftermath of the unfortunate incident, ADG Railways Prakash D called for special vigilance on railway platforms for all the special trains bound for Prayagraj. He advised strict coordination for controlling the hike in the number of devotees at the railway stations.
What eyewitnesses said
As per reports, one of the coolies working at the station said that a massive crowd of people had gathered at platform numbers 12, 13, 14 and 15. “ As the stampede broke out, our colleagues rushed to help people. There was a huge commotion. We helped pull people from under others. We even pulled out a few bodies,” the coolie said.
A passenger named Pappu, who lost his mother-in-law in the stampede, said that there was no police present when the stampede occurred. “Around 9 pm, the stampede broke out. There was not police presence there. The situation was so bad that no one was able to help anyone else. People were just trying to pull out those who were crushed under the crowd,” he said.
