railway station stampede: Day after, distraught families search for missing loved ones
A day after the stampede at the New Delhi railway station, heavy security deployment and barricading was witnessed outside Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan (LNJP) Hospital on Sunday.
Distraught families searched for their missing loved ones, running from one hospital to another with photographs in hand.
Sheela, a relative of Poonam Devi (40), a resident of Bihar, who died in the stampede, was present outside LNJP Hospital on Sunday morning. Sheela said she, along with other relatives, was going to Bihar when a sea of people crowded the platform. “What was her fault? The train was to come at platform number 12. Suddenly, there was an announcement that the train is coming on platform number 14. It created panic among the passengers, leading to the stampede. She was crushed by people.”
Several people also alleged that hospitals were not allowing them to personally search for their missing family members among the admitted patients, adding to their despair.
“My wife, Meena, has been missing since Saturday evening. She was supposed to board a train to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh, but she never returned,” said Bhola Sah, showing her photograph on his mobile phone outside LNJP Hospital.
She did not even have a ticket. Her 4-5 companions are also untraceable and their mobile phones are unreachable, said Bhola.
The stampede that occurred on Saturday evening, led to a chaos at the crowded railway station. While several injured persons were admitted to LNJP Hospital and Lady Hardinge Medical College and Hospital, desperate families claim that they were being turned away without being allowed to check inside.
“Hospital officials told me there are no bodies of the stampede victims as all bodies have been taken away by their relatives,” Sah added.
Moazzam, another worried relative, was looking for his missing brother Nadim, who was supposed to board Swatantrata Senani Express to Darbhanga.
“He has no mobile phone. So I have no means to contact him. His train was to leave from platform no. 13 on Saturday night. I am afraid that something might have happened to him,” Moazzam said.
“Hospital officials did not let me search for missing family member among the injured persons admitted here,” Moazzam said.
Families also claimed that they have not been able to file even a missing complaint. Authorities at the hospitals have been showing families a list of the admitted patients. If their relative’s name is not in the list, they are asked to leave. “Where do we go now?” Moazzam questioned, preparing to visit another hospital in search of his brother.
Special trains for Prayagraj from platform 16
Meanwhile, it has been decided that all special trains bound for Prayagraj will run from platform number 16. Therefore, all passengers going to Prayagraj will come and go from the Ajmeri Gate side of the New Delhi railway station. Regular trains will continue to be operated from all platforms as the regular practice is.
