At least 17 people, including 13 women and one child, died and at least 35 others were injured in a stampede at a popular Durga Puja pandal in North Kolkata on Saturday.
The incident occurred at around 7:40pm at the exit gate of the Sarada Park (Chor Bagan) Puja Pandal, also known as the Chore Bagan Sarbojanin Puja pandal, located in the Girish Park Police Station area, reports NDTV.
According to Kolkata Police, the crush was triggered by heavy weekend crowds of pandal visitors during rain.
All injured persons were rescued and taken to MCH hospital. Witnesses reported that several people lost consciousness during the crush and were rushed to the hospital on motorcycles. A witness pointed out that both the entrance and exit gates were very narrow, and that there was no lighting in the area.
In response, Kolkata Police deployed reinforcements from the control room, together with the fire brigade, the Disaster Management Group (DMG) team, and medical teams with ambulances. The puja pandal has since been closed to visitors.
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal reached the hospital to take stock of the situation.
Expressing shock over the incident in a message on X, Mamata Banerjee, former Bengal chief minister, prayed to Maa Durga for the speedy recovery of the injured and strength for the bereaved families.
