At least 18 people died in a stampede at New Delhi Railway Station on Saturday night. Porters at the station described the heartbreaking scenes as they carried bodies on handcarts through the chaos.
“A massive crowd gathered when a train to Prayagraj arrived. People were packed so tightly on the foot overbridge that many suffocated. I saw at least 10-15 people lose their lives right there,” said Krishna Kumar Jogi, a porter who witnessed the incident.
“We carried the dead bodies from platforms 14 and 15 to the ambulances,” he added.
Women and children were among those crushed in the crowd. Another porter, Balram, said, “In my 15 years here, I have never seen such a crowd. We carried bodies on the same handcarts we use for luggage.”
The Northern Railway’s Chief Public Relations Officer, Himanshu Upadhyay, explained that the stampede started when “some people coming down the stairs from the foot overbridge slipped and fell, leading to others falling on top of them.”
Porters recalled the chaos vividly. “There were shoes, slippers, and bags scattered everywhere. We pulled out many children and elderly people from the crowd,” one porter said.
Officials confirmed that the stampede occurred as large numbers of passengers waited for trains to Prayagraj, where the Maha Kumbh is currently underway.
