Northern Railway’s Chief Public Relations Officer, Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, stated that the stampede at New Delhi Railway Station was triggered when a passenger heading towards platforms 14-15 slipped and fell on the stairs, causing others behind him to lose balance. At the time of the incident, the Magadh Express was stationed at platform 14 and the Uttar Sampark Kranti at platform 15. The overcrowding, fueled by a large number of passengers traveling for the Maha Kumbh, led to a deadly rush. A high-level committee has been set up to investigate the incident, but train services were not affected, and operations remain normal.
The tragedy, which occurred at around 10 p.m. on Saturday, claimed the lives of 18 people, including women and children. Over 1,500 general tickets had been sold, leading to severe congestion, especially around platform 14 and the escalator near platform 1. Rescue teams, including the NDRF, were deployed immediately, and officials confirmed that the situation was now under control. Police reports indicated that delays in departures of the Swatantrata Senani Express and Bhubaneswar Rajdhani further exacerbated the crowd buildup at platforms 12, 13, and 14.
In response to the incident, the Railway Board announced the formation of a two-member high-level committee to investigate the cause of the stampede. Executive Director of Information & Publicity, Dilip Kumar, confirmed that passengers had been accommodated on special trains and that normal train movement had resumed. Authorities are continuing their probe to determine accountability and ensure that such tragedies do not recur.
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