‘Don’t Blame The Rain,’ Say Experts On Mumbai Stampede

Twenty-two people died and 39 were injured in a stampede at a foot overbridge at Elphinstone Station in Mumbai. While the government has ordered inquires into the incident, the Western Railways in a statement said ‘unprecedented rain’ led to overcrowding of the bridge resulting in the subsequent stampede.

Civic activists disagree. “There have been much heavier showers in the past, today’s (Thursday) showers were nothing compared to that,” Railway Activist Arun Saxena told BloombergQuint in an interview.

According to Ketan Garodia, a member of the Central Railway Committee on Accidents, one key factor to look at is the huge increase in passenger traffic in that particular station. “Mill lands were allowed to be converted to commercial space and the number of people who travel to Elphinstone and Lower Parel has gone up by at least a 1,000 percent” he said.

While Mumbai’s municipal authorities give permissions to change the use of mill land to commercial space, railway authorities have not updated their infrastructure, Garodia explained. The lack of coordination does not end there. The railway authorities were not intimated about the change in policy allowing mill lands to be converted, he added.

Also Read: In Photos: Mumbai’s Spirit Crumbles After Elphinstone Stampede

Saxena also blames the Commission for Railway Safety which, incidentally, reports to the Ministry of Civil Aviation. “They have to prepare annual reports and must attend to feedback from passengers” he said.

While local civic bodies grant permissions for development of commercial projects, the railways, which carry people to work at these complexes, are under the purview of the Centre. The state government too plays its part. Incidentally, the Bharatiya Janta Party is in power both at the Centre and the state and shares power with the Shiv Sena at the municipal level. BJP Leader Shaina NC, while admitting that the incident was the result of a “complete failure of administration”, also argued for ‘collective responsibility’.

The previous government at the state led by the Congress “did not even have the foresight to build broader and wider foot overbridges and just absolved themselves of responsibility”, she said.

Also Read: Government To Conduct Safety, Capacity Audit Of Railway Footbridges

The Congress meanwhile alleged that the government of the day has not prioritised the Mumbai resident. “For the past three years, the focus of the government is not the Mumbaikar or Mumbai,” Sushiben Shah, general secretary of the Mumbai Congress said. “They are using Mumbai as a milking cow.”

The political rhetoric, however, has little bearing on the average citizen who uses the Mumbai local to commute every day. Ketan Garodia pointed to the need of the hour saying, “The capacity of the Central, Western and Harbour line should be increased by a minimum of 300 percent and this is possible.”

Watch the interview with the Shiv Sena’s Arvind Sawant on the Elphinstone station stampede here.