Tragedies of Poor Crowd Management

Repeated stampedes in India highlight fatal lapses in crowd control, infrastructure, and planning, demanding urgent systemic reforms to protect lives, writes Joydeep Nayak

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COMMON Man was trying to board a train in New Delhi Railway Station, he was trampled and killed.

Common Man was trying to take a bath in the River Ganga at Maha Kumbh Mela, he was trampled and killed. Common Man was trying to say his prayers at Lord Balaji Temple in Tirupati, he was trampled and killed. Common Man was trying to celebrate a normal cricket victory at Bengaluru, he was trampled and killed. Common Man is the victim, he cannot be blamed for being trampled and killed.

The Administration is responsible for his death, in all the places in India. From the sacred banks of the Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj to the chaotic platforms of New Delhi Railway Station, the revered Tirupati temple, and even the celebratory streets outside Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium, we've seen tragedy strike again and again. These incidents, all happening in a couple of months from 2024 and 2025, have left us grieving, angry, and searching for answers.

Picture this: it’s January 29, 2025, at the Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj. Millions of pilgrims are gathered at the Sangam, the holy confluence of rivers, for Mauni Amavasya, one of the most sacred days for a dip in the waters. The air is thick with devotion, but also with tension. The crowd is massive. Then, a barrier collapses, and panic ripples through the crowd like wildfire. Before anyone can react, 30 people are gone, and 60 others are injured. It’s a gut-punch to think about. The sheer scale of the Kumbh makes it a logistical nightmare, but the broken barricades, limited exit routes, and overwhelmed security didn’t help. It’s hard to know the full truth, but the pain is undeniable.