From mechanical glitches to faulty execution, there are numerous reports of accidents at amusement parks that elicit shock and provoke anger, says Sakshi Sharma

On June 18, an incident at Chennai’s Queensland Amusement Park brought attention to the issue of negligence of safety in amusements parks. Steel cables holding one of the platforms of a ride named Free Fall Tower snapped and came down crashing, leaving one dead and 15 injured. A similar collapsing incident took place at Chennai’s Kishkinta Amusement Park in 2016. The elevated merry-go-round ride called Disco Dancer collapsed into three pieces due to a mechanical fault and flung its riders into the air. Twenty people were injured in the mishap

From mechanical glitches to faulty execution, there are numerous reports of accidents at amusement parks that elicit shock and provoke anger for some time but their essence might soon get dilluted. Albeit there are height and age restrictions, however, how much could mishappenings be avoided even then? What is the probability of assurance of safety? The parks are for amusement and a fun escape from the usual monotony. People go for joy rides but face horrible consequences instead. Such cases of mishap stem from lenient norms and negligence governing the amusement industry as well as outdated equipment. All of this calls for a deeper attention to their safety policies and regulations. The untrained professional and obsolete equipment creates safety gaps in the long run.

Lack of proper machinery

In 2018, a Facebook post of a Delhi girl went viral when she shared about a horrific incident at the Worlds of Wonder, Noida. In the first flip of the ride, the shoulder safety harness got unlocked and a man fell off the ride hitting his head to an iron rod on the step down. This clearly indicates towards the negligence of the park machinery. They are desserted for a while after such accidents but bounce back to their operations when the cases start fading.

Experts claim that one of the major causes that leads to such severe cases of mishap at amusement parks in the country is that they are still in their budding phase and require significant investment on both infrastructure and machinery up-keep. As per the data, they require at least Rs 700 crore for mega parks and Rs 100 crore for mid-sized ones. There is also high operational expenditure. Also, although it’s a highly seasonal business, the parks have to operate at full capacity even during off-seasons, which in turn pulls down their scope of any improvement.

Furthermore, even though park owners and operators might generally check the working of their rides periodically or when there is a breakdown — this could be too late. The parks are usually governed by laws in most states but the ability of each state to monitor if these laws are being followed is hampered by a state’s financial and personnel constraints. This is one of the major facts that contribute to negligence as it may leave many parks to self-monitor and also make a profit.

It was on a winter evening in 2011 when Amritsar-based Neha Saini went for go-karting (open wheel car meant for high-powered racing) at Rohini Amusement Park. She shares, “They gave me a loose helmet and when I requested one of my size, they denied. The ride started with a jerk. My waist-long hair got pulled into the axle of the car’s wheel and my entire scalp got pulled apart.” There were no immediate ambulance facilities and she had to wait for 15 minutes for it to arrive at the venue while she was bleeding. The park authorities and contractors had claimed that it was not their fault and blamed her instead. It has been nine years since Neha filed two cases against the park authorities. However, the final judgement has only been stretching.

Months later, in a similar incident, a woman passed away while riding a go-kart at an amusement park near Yadavindra Gardens, Pinjore.

On the contrary, Imran Rana, director, Atlantic Water World says, “Every morning a team of guards and operations manager check the functioning of each ride. They brief lifeguards and assistants about the loading capacity and time frame. We call various rides manufactures to give training  to our staff. They are trained for 10-15 days before operating the rides.” On being questioned about the medical assistance and ambulance facilities, he says, it is parked outside the park till the time the amusement park is open. He also talks about their public insurance policy which covers any accident that happens. But such claims are debunked by every mishap that happens subsequently.

Untrained professionals

In most of the accidents, there have been complaints about the staff, who were not competent enough to ride the rides and had no safety measures laid down on how to operate them. Neha feels that she should have been guided by the professionals before getting on to the ride. “As the casualty took place, the staff there had no clue about what to do. They said that their work was only to load and unload the riders. They were not even given any training or instructions on how to ride,” says she.

A resident from Mayur Vihar, Rohan Mehra shares his experience of the break dance ride. “During the ride, a woman got a sprain in her neck. Her family asked the riders to stop the ride but they were unable to do so promptly. Instead, it took them six more minutes to finally end the ride,” he says. It was because they were unable to control the ride as it was too fast. However, one of the other reasons one can cite for this unwelcoming behaviour is that they often load people more than the capacity in order to make more money. Not only should they be provided proper training, instead should be taught how to handle the situation in case of such accidents too.

Government authorities and licensing

If you intend to set up an amusement park then you need to obtain a premises licence under the Regulations for Licensing & controlling places of Public Amusement, 1980. To further understand the process and how these parks get the permission to operate when they are not well equipped and lack professional trainers, we had a conversation with Pradeep Singh, Inspector from licensing department. He says, “We ask NOCs, reports and no-objection certificate from all the concerned departments. In turn, the operators are required to get a license from various local authorities, such as the public works department, the fire department, the police and others. If the park is well equipped and has trained professional only then we grant them the permission.” He further tells that Sports Authority of India (SAI) checks and reports the parks, without which the license is not granted or renewed. They send their swimming coaches to inspect the premises and also check the functionality of the equipment. On being asked if medical assistance and ambulance facilities are included under the norms, he says yes. Further, on being questioned about the mishap, he says, “We take strict action against such parks and cancel their license if their explanation to the happenings is not satisfactory. In case of any casualty, whoever reports to us, be it local police or any agency we act accordingly.” The Police Commissioner, Sub-Divisional officer, Station house officer and Inspectors process the complaints right from the moment any mishap takes place.

The government licences and period safety audits are mandatory but the main concern that lies here is that, there are no specific laws governing amusement parks in India which would ensure that the safety standards are met. There are no guidelines to adhere to. However, a detailed set of guidelines is formulated by the Indian Association of Amusement Parks and Industries but the parks are not bound to abide by them. All of this calls for tighter safety norms. India is in dire need of a national law governing amusement parks and their safety. People can no longer rely on fun enveloped in accidents so frequently.