The aftermath of the deadly stampede at New Delhi Railway Station late Saturday night left a grim scene-footwear, clothes and personal belongings lay scattered across platforms, escalators and the railway overbridge as authorities worked to restore order. Several videos of the aftermath of the incident show a sea of crowd at the station.
Visuals showed abandoned shoes, bags and water bottles strewn across the station, with staff deployed to collect and dispose of them. At least 18 people, including 11 women and five children, lost their lives in the incident, while more than a dozen others sustained injuries and are undergoing treatment at nearby hospitals.
After the stampede and rescue efforts at the station, visuals showed piles of clothes, shoes, water bottles, bags and other belongings of people scattered along the station premises. Staff was pressed into gathering them into bags and disposing them.
A clip showed several pairs of slippers and shoes and other belongings strewn on an escalator and a staircase connecting to the footover bridge. Another video showed hundreds of people, some carrying children on their shoulders, rushing through the railway station while others struggle with their luggage amid the chaos and no police personnel are seen at the site. However, in one video, a policeman is seen interacting with some people in the crowd.
The stampede was preceded by a swell in the crowd of passengers waiting to board trains to Prayagraj where the Maha Kumbh is underway on platform numbers 14 and 15 of the station.
The stampede occurred around 10 pm as thousands of passengers jostled to board trains bound for Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh.
The chaos intensified due to delays in two scheduled trains and the rush for a special express service, leading to overcrowding on multiple platforms. According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Railway, KPS Malhotra, several people were present on platform number 14 when the Prayagraj Express train stood on the platform.