Eyewitnesses recall Saturday night horror at New Delhi Railway Station post stampede

New Delhi: People's belongings scattered everywhere, a crowd unlike anything seen before with scores pushing and scrambling for space amid cries for help -- eyewitnesses have recalled the horror as the death toll in the overnight stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station climbed to 18 on Sunday.

According to official sources, a wrong announcement about change of platforms may have created a confusion that led to the stampede, something that some eyewitnesses also claimed.

As soon as the announcement was made, people surged forward by pushing each other. Those who fell were trampled in the rush, Ravi Kumar, a vendor running a shop at the railway station for the past 12 years, told PTI.

The crowd was unlike anything seen before, he said.

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Northern Railway's Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Himanshu Upadhyay said on Sunday that at the time of the incident, the Patna-bound Magadh Express was standing at platform number 14 and the New Delhi-Jammu Uttar Sampark Kranti Express was stationed at platform number 15.

The overwhelming number of passengers was waiting to board trains for Prayagraj, where the Maha Kumbh is underway.

"Some people who were coming down from the footover bridge towards platform numbers 14 and 15 using stairs slipped and fell on others," the CPRO said, citing the cause of the stampede.

Recalling the distressing scenes, Kumar said, "The rush on platforms 12, 14, and 15 was overwhelming. All the trains bound for Prayagraj were packed beyond capacity."

"The Prayagraj Express was already standing on one platform when an announcement was made for the arrival of another train. As soon as the announcement was made, people surged forward, pushing each other. The footbridge connecting the platforms is small, and in the rush, people fell and were trampled." Ved Prakash, a resident of Paharganj, planned to travel to Prayagraj with his wife but decided to return home after witnessing the huge swell in crowd.

"Even inside the train, there was no space to stand. I stepped out and chose to go back," he said.

The family member of one of the deceased on Sunday reached the LNJP Hospital to collect the body of Poonam Devi, who was heading home to Bihar on Saturday night.

"There was an overwhelming crowd at the station, and her train was supposed to arrive at platform number 12. However, after an announcement was made, people started rushing, and those who fell were crushed," the relative said.

Among the victims was a woman travelling with her family to Chhapra in Bihar. Her son, struggling to hold back his tears, recounted the devastating loss.

"We were travelling home in a large group and my mother lost her life in the chaos. People were pushing each other, and she got caught in the rush," he said.

One of the passengers, Dharmendra Singh, said, "I was going to Prayagraj but many trains were running late or were cancelled. The station was overcrowded. There were far more people than I have ever seen at this station. In front of me, six or seven women were taken away on stretchers."