Death toll in stampede at Kolkata puja pandal rises to 19, 14 arrested

The death toll from a stampede caused by the pressure of excessive crowds at a Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata, the capital of India's West Bengal, has risen to 19. Among the dead are 13 women and one child. Another 25 people injured in the incident are undergoing treatment at various hospitals.

The accident took place on Saturday evening (17 October) at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal at Sarda Park (Chorbagan) in the Girish Park police station area of north Kolkata. Kolkata Police said the situation arose as a huge number of people crowded into the pandal, ignoring the rain.

In a statement given on Saturday evening, police said the stampede occurred at around 7:40 pm local time on the way out of the pandal. All the injured were rescued and taken to the Medical College and Hospital.

Eyewitnesses complained that the entrance and exit of the pandal were extremely narrow and there was not adequate lighting arrangement in the area either. Many also complained that immediate adequate assistance was not received from the police and the fire service at the time of the incident.

After the accident, the pandal has been closed to visitors. In addition, the activities of four puja pandals in Kolkata — Tala Prattoy, Alipore Sarbojanin, Chetla Sammilani and Chorbagan Sarbojanin — have been temporarily suspended. Alongside, security arrangements have also been strengthened at other pandals in the state.

On allegations of negligence in this incident, police have arrested a total of 14 people, including several of the puja organizers. However, their names and identities have not yet been disclosed. The police, the fire service and the disaster management force have jointly begun work to investigate the incident.

On receiving news of the accident, West Bengal Chief Minister Shuvendu Adhikari went to Kolkata Medical College Hospital, accompanied by the state's health minister and Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal, and inquired about the injured.

Visiting the situation, the chief minister said CCTV footage is being examined to see whether there was any negligence in controlling the crowd at the pandal. Whoever's negligence is proven — the organizing committee, the police or private security personnel — no one will be spared. He also said that, in the interest of a transparent investigation, an application will be made to the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court to form a task force led by a Calcutta High Court judge.

The chief minister has also announced the formation of a high-level committee to review security arrangements at the state's major Durga Puja pandals.

The chief minister announced financial assistance of 15 lakh rupees to the family of each of the deceased and a government job in a Group D post for one member of each family. He also said that, along with bearing the full cost of better treatment for the injured, each of them will be given financial assistance of 5 lakh rupees.

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced financial assistance of 2 lakh rupees to the families of the deceased and 50 thousand rupees to each of the injured. Both leaders expressed deep grief over this tragic incident and wished the injured a speedy recovery.

As the investigation results and the task force formation process move forward, Kolkata's attention is now on the future of the four closed pandals and how effective the strengthened security at the remaining pandals proves to be.