Kolkata stampede: Adhikari proposes ending VIP pandal gates

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on October 18 that the government could require Durga Puja organisers to remove VIP gates after a stampede at the Chorbagan pandal in north Kolkata killed 19 people and injured 25, according to The Economic Times. He called for clearly defined entrances and exits and said separate VIP queues would not be allowed.

The stampede occurred on Saturday night, October 17, following a crowd surge during rain. The proposal on VIP gates was presented as a possible government requirement, rather than an already notified statewide ban.

Popular, high-budget pandals often offer special entrances, including access through premium-priced passes. These routes can remain relatively free of congestion even when general visitor numbers peak. The report does not establish that VIP access caused the Chorbagan stampede.

Safety inspections and visitor limits

Speaking at the state police headquarters, Adhikari said a special safety team had been set up late on Saturday to examine arrangements at major city pandals. He named the state disaster management secretary, Fire Services Director General Anuj Sharma and Special Task Force Additional Director General Javed Shamim as its leaders.

The team would inspect pandals across Kolkata and make immediate safety decisions, including restricting visitor numbers where necessary. Police station officers in the districts were also instructed to inspect local pandals, draw up crowd-management guidelines and ensure organisers followed them.

Adhikari said he planned to monitor crowd movement from the traffic control room at Kolkata Police headquarters on Sunday evening. A scaled-back Bijoya Sammelani with puja committees from Kolkata and its suburbs is scheduled for October 26, when organisers and officials are to discuss lessons from this year’s festivities.

Separate inquiry to examine possible lapses

Adhikari also described a separate Special Investigation Team intended to examine whether failures by public agencies contributed to the tragedy. He said personnel from Kolkata Police, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and the fire services department had been excluded because their conduct could come under scrutiny.

Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal would write to Calcutta High Court Chief Justice Ravindra Vithalrao Ghuge to seek permission for a sitting judge to head the inquiry, Adhikari said. A retired judge would be considered if permission was not granted. The proposed team includes a home department official of at least joint secretary rank, representatives of the DGP and the National Disaster Response Force, and disaster management secretary Rajesh Sinha.

Responding to eyewitness allegations that police were unavailable to help when the stampede occurred, Adhikari defended the force. He said bereaved families he had spoken to described officers arranging app-based cabs to take injured people to hospital. These competing accounts do not settle whether there were policing lapses; that remains a matter for investigation.

Compensation and treatment

Adhikari said he would visit bereaved families on October 20 and 21 and distribute compensation cheques of Rs 25 lakh. Of the 19 people who died, he said, one was from Muzaffarpur in Bihar and the others were West Bengal residents.

Magistrates and deputy superintendent-ranked police officers had been assigned to oversee the return of bodies and remain with families through the cremations, he said. Arrangements were also being made with the relevant protocol officer for the victim from Bihar.

Each injured person would receive Rs 5 lakh at the October 26 gathering, Adhikari said. He described 23 of the 25 injured as having minor injuries and likely to leave hospital soon. Two remained in intensive care; according to his account of doctors’ advice, their conditions were not life-threatening.