What led to stampede at New Delhi Railway Station that killed 15 people? 10 points

The New Delhi Railway Station stampede took place when a sea of people was standing at platform number 14 where Prayagraj Express was stationed.

Saturday witnessed a horrific incident when stampede-like situation occurred at the New Delhi Railway Station. The incident took at least 15 lives, including three children, and 10 others. Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting, Electronics & Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw assured that the situation was taken under control and the injured were taken to hospital.  

#WATCH | Delhi | Visuals from platform number 14 – one of the platforms of New Delhi Railway station where 15 people have lost their lives and several others are injured in the stampede that occurred yesterday around 10 PM pic.twitter.com/YqQkHNYzwO

— ANI (@ANI) February 16, 2025

This is what happened 

• The incident took place when a sea of people was standing at platform number 14 where Prayagraj Express was stationed, according to KPS Malhotra, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Railway.  
• Malhotra also said that more congestion was made due to delays in Swatantrata Senani Express and Bhubaneshwar Rajdhani as the passengers of the two trains gathered at platform numbers 12,13 and14.  
• Talking about the situation, DCP Malhotra said that the Railways sold 1500 tickets which led to overwhelming crowd. He also said that the situation deteriorated near platform number 14 and near the escalator at platform number 1.   
• “The sudden rush occurred within a span of 15-20 minutes after a special train was announced, prompting passengers to scramble to board it,” he said.  
• Indian railways initially dismissed the stampede as “a rumour” but gave a confirmation that many people, numbers unrevealed, had been injured and taken to hospital.  
• The ministry of Railways said that an unprecedented sudden rush happened on Saturday at 10 pm at the New Delhi railway station near platforms 13 & 14.  
• “Some of the passengers present there on the platforms fainted due to this sudden rush further leading to the rumours of stampede like situation. This led to the spread of panic. The situation was later controlled by easing the rush situation. Northern Railways immediately ran four special trains to evacuate the unprecedented sudden rush. Now the rush has been reduced. In the meanwhile, the fainted & injured passengers have been taken to nearby hospitals by RPF & Delhi Police.” 
• Ashwini Vaishnaw informed that four special trains had been sent to evacuate the crowd, and the rush was later reduced. He also said that a high-level enquiry has been ordered.  
• Executive Director of Information & Publicity at the Railway Board, Dilip Kumar informed on Sunday that a high-level committee, comprising of two members, had been formed to investigate the matter and determine the cause of the stampede. 
• Reacting to the unfortunate incident, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a post on X said, “Distressed by the stampede at New Delhi Railway Station. 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.”