Mumbai Elphinstone Road station stampede was bound to happen and Railways couldn't care less

The Mumbai stampede tragedy has left over 22 people dead and several others injured. The commuters had repeatedly alerted the authorities about the chances of a tragedy, even warned them, but to no avail. People are of the view that the tragedy was inevitable.

 

IndiaToday.in  | Edited by Mohak Gupta
New Delhi, September 29, 2017 | UPDATED 14:23 IST
Mumbai Elphinstone Road station stampedeMumbai Elphinstone Road station stampede

Something as ordinary as catching a train served death to as many as 22 people today in Mumbai.

Other than those who lost their lives, at least 35 people have been injured in a stampede on a foot-over bridge at the Mumbai's Parel Railway Station, that connects Western line's Prabhadevi (formerly Elphinstone Road) and Central line's Parel suburban stations.

Dr Pravin Bangar, a senior medical officer at Mumbai's KEM Hospital said that 15 people were brought dead.

According to some eye-witnesses, the panic kicked off due to the arrival of two trains at the same time on opposite tracks.

THE INEVITABLE MUMBAI STAMPEDE

The tragedy at Parel-Elphinstone Road over-bridge was inevitable according to several people.

The area is served by Parel and Currey Road stations on the Central Railway and Elphinstone Road, Lower Parel stations on the Western Railway.

These stations were built during the first phase of railway construction in India in the first half of the 20th century.

However, as the area changed with it becoming a business hub, it saw many people crossing the Parel bridge connected to the Elphinstone Road station.

As many shared photos and updates of the tragedy on social media platforms, there are people who have been talking about the problem since the last two years.

Twitter user Rashmi wrote today, "I've been writing to railway minister for the last two years regarding Parel bridge. This was bound to happen. Only one very narrow bridge. I use it daily."

Another Facebook user Santosh Andhale posted a status update on Facebook on Wednesday asking Central Railway to do something about the Parel bridge connected to Elphinstone Road.

Twitter user Manjul shared photos showing the only staircase which people use to exit and enter the station.

In July, 2016, Twitter user Chandan tweeted that Parel is awaiting a stampede.

Commuters who use Parel and Elphinstone Road stations have been going through the chaos for a long time now. For them, every day is a stampede-like situation there.

It is a muddy lane with garbage bins in the vicinity. Several religious edifices connect the station to the roads leading to the office complexes.

Parel station has not been remodeled but authorities have been talking about it for decades.