A chaotic scene was seen at the New Delhi Railway Station as an unexpected surge of passengers created a 'stampede-like situation' on Sunday (March 23). However, with prompt crowd-control efforts, any potential tragedy was averted and no injuries were reported. While the Delhi Police acknowledged that the situation resembled a stampede, the Ministry of Railways offered a different perspective. In a statement, officials clarified that although the station witnessed an unusually heavy rush of travellers, there was "no stampede or stampede-like situation" at any point.
Eyewitnesses claimed that overcrowding at the platforms sparked panic among commuters, some of whom were seen scrambling for space and safety. The fear and confusion prompted immediate action from law enforcement, who quickly implemented crowd management strategies to bring the situation under control, the Delhi Police said. CPRO of Northern Railway, Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, stated that there is always an extra rush at the New Delhi Railway Station on Sundays. The officials enforced the crowd control measures due to which there was proper crowd management. Shekhar added that he reviewed the situation at the present time, and it is normal.
What led to the heavy rush?
As per the Delhi Police, the situation escalated between 9:30 and 10:00 pm when an unusually large crowd began to build up on platform numbers 12 and 13. The sudden influx of passengers was attributed to a series of cascading delays affecting several major trains. The mounting crowd pressure necessitated urgent crowd-management efforts to ensure the safety and orderly movement of passengers, they added.
Officials further said that delays in the arrival and departure of five major trains created a bottleneck at New Delhi Railway Station, leading to the surge in crowd. The Shiv Ganga Express, which was scheduled to leave at 8:05 pm, departed at 9:20 pm after a delay of over an hour. Meanwhile, the Swatantrata Senani Express, set for a 9:15 pm departure, was already occupying one of the key platforms. Adding to the congestion, the Jammu Rajdhani Express (scheduled for 9:25 pm) and Lucknow Mail (slated for 10:00 pm) were both running late. The Magadh Express, scheduled to leave at 9:05 pm, was also not assigned a platform which further compounded the confusion.
In response, railway authorities promptly implemented special crowd-control measures. Unreserved passengers were redirected to designated holding zones to ease platform congestion. Senior officials, including the Senior Commandant of the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and the Station Director of New Delhi Railway Station, were also present on the ground to monitor and manage the situation closely.
Stampede claimed 18 lives at New Delhi railway station
This latest incident comes following a tragic incident that shook the New Delhi Railway Station just over a month ago. On February 15, a devastating crowd crush claimed the lives of at least 18 people and left 15 others injured. That incident, too, was triggered by a combination of heavy passenger influx, cascading train delays and miscommunication about train schedules. As per reports, the situation spiralled out of control due to existing infrastructure constraints and the lack of timely crowd control, culminating in a deadly stampede on platforms 14 and 15.
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