Prayagraj: Having witnessed the stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela unfold, thousands of others and I are still reeling from it and looking for answers that the government should provide.
Living in the camps currently, I can say that there is very little information that is trickling in. The loud speakers on every street chowk are busy announcing, “Take the snan at your nearest ghat and return to your camps. Don’t believe in any rumours. The police is with you.”
After a walk of around seven kilometres today, I reached a spot close to the Sangam area and found it completely closed off. Devotees were discouraged to visit it or bathe near it. All public transport and even motorcyles have been stopped from plying within the vast mela. So one can only walk to travel around. The Shahi Snans have began, but fanfare is muted.
Mobile internet and even connectivity, especially for Airtel and Jio, appeared to have been down for many hours, making it it impossible to make even regular calls. In the absence of concrete communication, many at the Mela are left speculating on what happened at the stampede.
There is no doubt that families of the deceased devotees are in deep shock and perhaps shattered, but the question still needs to be asked as to why there was an over 12-hour delay in the announcement of how many casualties there have been. Who are the 25 people who have been identified, among the 30 who are dead? When will the list of their names be released?
As a witness of the tragedy and given the crowd and its proportions, it is clear to see why the government must provide clear answers and not let ambiguity and misinformation surround the situation.
The second big question is on the number of injured. We have little news of how they are doing, or the details of medical aid provided for them. Where are they being treated, for instance? Has the media been given access to them?
The third question is why the pontoon bridges were closed off. There were about 28 of them only two or one were kept open and functional? Were police pushing people down just one way towards the Sangam? At the least, the government should share the mobility plan for January 29, so it is clear what transpired and under whose orders.
Because many questions have been raised about the VIP culture, the government and Mela need to be asked a fourth question – they need to actually tell us what the police forces were doing in the hours leading up to the stampede.
No official inquiry has been ordered into the stampede yet, so the question also looms as to which Mela administrator is responsible for this.
The various entry and exit points for Prayagraj city had also been blocked off, and were finally opened in the evening. The big question is as to what use the blockades were if the government had not been prepared for crores of people to crowd an area.
