A stampede at Surat railway station resulted in one fatality and three injuries when a large crowd attempted to board a train from Surat to Bhagalpur, leading to chaos at the railway platform.
According to a report by the Indian Express, Ramprakash Singh, brother of the deceased victim Ankit, recollects the moment when the stampede occurred.
Recalling the incident, Ramprakash Singh told The Indian Express, “Our festive break from work began today. So we had booked the tickets. There was a huge crowd… we struggled and reached the S7 coach and found people struggling to enter the coach.”
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The high demand for train reservations is posing a challenge for individuals intending to travel home for the festivities, making it difficult for them to secure a reserved berth.
According to the report, Singh added, “Passengers were pushing each other, and Ankit fell on the floor of the passage area even before we could reach our seats. Many passengers stomped on him. I found him lying on the floor and shouted… told passengers to wait. But they did not listen.”
Ramprakash told Indian Express that he continued shouting loudly but nobody listened. “Later, I requested a group of youths to save my brother. My brother was taken out from the coach to the platform. I could not breathe.”
Officials have attributed the stampede at the railway station to the large influx of people trying to board various trains heading to their hometowns.
Sarojini Kumari, the Superintendent of Police for Western Railway Vadodara Division, stated that the injured individuals have been transferred to the hospital and are currently receiving medical treatment.
Ankit, who lost his life in the incident, was employed as a diamond polisher at Vadhwan Gems in Varachha, according to the report.
Earlier, Sunil Singh, who is the brother-in-law of both Ramprakash and Ankit, mentioned, “The railway authorities should have arranged a few more trains in view of the passenger traffic and also increased the trips of trains between Surat to Bihar.”
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Darshan Jardosh, Minister of State for Railways & Textiles posted on X, “People from all over India live in Surat. During the festival time, everyone goes to their hometown, mostly using rail transport. Today, due to overcrowding, some passengers complained of suffocation, the railway administration has remained vigilant and provided medical treatment to all. Met all the passengers inquired about their condition and gave appropriate instructions to the administration. It is my humble request to all the passengers that you take care of yourself during the journey and travel comfortably.”
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However, the Minister of State for Railways did not make any reference to the deceased individual in their statement.
Meanwhile, with the aim of enhancing passenger convenience and alleviating the congestion in the Surat/Udhna area caused by the significant number of travellers during Diwali and Chhath, additional special trains are being introduced in addition to those already announced, Jardosh informed.
On November 12, 2023, the Udhna Danapur (departing from Udhna at 06:00 hrs) will serve the Udhna Chhapra and Udhna Danapur routes.
On November 13, 2023, the 09195 Udhna Danapur will depart from Udhna at 22:00, accompanied by two more trains for Bihar/UP.