Stories
Chorbagan Death Trap: Narrow roads and apathetic organizers led to disaster
- •Chorbagan Sarbojonin near Ram Mandir on Central Avenue has gradually become one of Kolkata prominent Pujas, drawing massive crowds over recent years.
- •The approach route involved a 10 to 12-foot-wide narrow alley with bamboo barricades where children, elderly, and other visitors had to wait in suffocating queues for hours.
- •Visitors and social media complaints highlighted the utter inexperience and incompetence of the puja committee members and volunteers in managing the massive crowds.
- •A wooden ramp constructed inside the marquee raised serious questions about its ability to withstand the tremendous pressure of hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Key Questions Answered
The Chorbagan Puja pandal experienced severe overcrowding due to its narrow entrance routes, a 10 to 12-foot-wide approach alley lined with bamboo barricades, unplanned arrangements, and a lack of adequate volunteers or police personnel to manage the massive crowds.
Visitors had to navigate through increasingly narrow alleys, a wooden plank ramp inside the marquee, and an even narrower exit route lined with stalls. When panic struck, this constrained design caused massive bottlenecks, leaving people with virtually no way to escape.
During the incident, loudspeaker announcements warning that the marquee was collapsing and ordering people to open all gates and evacuate immediately caused widespread panic. This triggered a chaotic rush as crowds simultaneously tried to push out through the narrow exit paths.
