Shocking footage has emerged of people cramming on to delayed trains at an Indian train station resulting in a ‘stampede’ which has left at least 15 people dead.
The tragic incident occurred at around 8pm local time in New Delhi’s railway station as passengers rushed to make two delayed trains.
Thousands of worshipers had been waiting to board the trains bound for Prayagraj City, a temporary township created to host the Maha Kumbh festival.
According to NDTV, the death toll includes at least 10 women and three children.
Media showed images and videos of crowds pouring over each other at the station, following the incident, as police and relief teams toiled to ease the congestion.
In the aftermath of the crush, India‘s defence minister Rajnath Singh took to X where he said he was ‘extremely pained by the loss of lives due to the stampede’.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and some other federal ministers confirmed the stampede incident in posts on X without disclosing the death toll.
‘My thoughts are with all those who have lost their loved ones. I pray that the injured have a speedy recovery. The authorities are assisting all those who have been affected by this stampede,’ he said on X.
Emergency services arrive on the scene of the ‘stampede’ at New Delhi railway station
Thousands of worshipers had been queuing to board delayed trains to a religious festival
Worshipers scramble to get on the packed trains at New Delhi station
Police respond to the ‘stampede’ incident at New Delhi railway station
Worshipers pictured crushing on board two delayed trains
India’s Interior Minister Amit Shah said in a post on X that he had spoken to the railway minister and taken stock of the situation.
An enquiry was ordered into the incident and four special trains were dispatched to evacuate the rush caused at the railway station, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on X, adding that the situation is now under control.
‘The entire team is working to assist all those who have been affected by this tragic incident,’ he said.
The governor of the capital territory Delhi, Vinai Kumar Saxena said disaster management personnel had been told to deploy and ‘all hospitals are in readiness to address related exigencies.’
The six-week Kumbh Mela is the single biggest milestone on the Hindu religious calendar, and officials said around 500 million devotees have already visited the festival since it began last month.
More than 400 people died after they were trampled or drowned on a single day of the festival in 1954, one of the largest tolls in a crowd-related disaster globally.
Another 36 people were crushed to death in 2013, the last time the festival was staged in Prayagraj.
India has witnessed several rail accidents in the last two years, including a collision in 2023 that killed at least 288 people. Indian railways is the fourth largest train network in the world and is undergoing a $30 billion upgrade, as part of Modi’s push to boost connectivity.