Photo: Tarunsamanta / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
At least 17 people were reported killed and dozens injured on Saturday evening when a crowd surge turned into a stampede at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal in north Kolkata, on Saptami, one of the busiest nights of the festival. The figure comes from hospital sources quoted in multiple media reports; the West Bengal government and Kolkata Police had not announced an official death toll by late evening, and some reports put the number higher.
In a statement, Kolkata Police said the stampede took place at the exit gate of the Sarada Park (Chor Bagan) pandal, under the Girish Park police station, at around 7.40 pm “due to heavy crowding amid rain”. About 35 people had been taken to Calcutta Medical College and Hospital, police said, adding that the pandal had been closed to visitors.
A sudden shower in a narrow lane
Heavy rain had been falling on and off across Kolkata since the afternoon, but crowds kept moving from pandal to pandal with umbrellas. The Chorbagan pandal sits in a cramped stretch off Muktaram Babu Street, reached through narrow lanes. According to local accounts, when a fresh spell of rain began, people outside rushed in to take shelter while those inside could not get out, and many fell on top of one another on a makeshift staircase near the exit.
There were also reports that part of the pandal’s iron structure gave way under the pressure of the crowd, which may have added to the casualties. Initial reports said most of those killed or hurt were women and children. One eyewitness told a news agency that both the entry and exit gates were narrow and the area had no proper lighting, and that his daughter and granddaughter were among those taken to hospital.
Chief Minister at the hospital
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal and Health Minister Sharadwat Mukherjee went to the Medical College hospital to see the injured. Fire brigade units, the city’s Disaster Management Group, ambulances with medical teams and police reinforcements were sent to the site, and senior officers, including the Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime), visited the pandal. Police sources said work was under way to identify the dead and injured, many of whom are believed to have travelled from the districts.
Deeply saddened by the loss of precious lives in the stampede at a Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata.
R.N. Ravi, Governor of West Bengal
Former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said she was shocked and saddened. Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh called the incident unfortunate and urged the authorities to put more doctors and staff on duty at the hospital.
Helplines and what comes next
The state government has opened a toll-free helpline, 1800 345 5678, for families looking for information, and the Kolkata Police control room at Lalbazar can be reached on 033 2214 1310.
The toll may still change: people were still being brought to hospital late on Saturday, and many of the injured were reported to be in a critical condition. Visitors have described narrow exits and a closed approach lane near the pandal, and police said further details were awaited. The festival’s peak days, Ashtami and Navami, are still ahead, when crowds at Kolkata’s community pandals are usually at their largest.
