Kolkata, Oct 18 The metropolis is lit up for Durga Puja, but its glow does not reach everyone. For families of the Kolkata stampede victims, grief has eclipsed the festivities as they wait outside a hospital to take their loved ones’ bodies home.
Durga Puja will never be the same for them — no more pandal visits, no prayers together, no celebrations.
A night after tragedy struck the Chorbagan Durga Puja pandal in north Kolkata, claiming 19 lives, some bereaved family members waiting outside Calcutta National Medical College were speechless with grief, while others broke down in tears, calling out to loved ones who would never return.
“I have nothing left. There will never be a Durga Puja in our lives again,” wailed Vinod Haldar, a rickshaw puller from New Town in eastern Kolkata, who lost his 17-year-old daughter in Saturday’s stampede.
Barnali Haldar, a Class 11 student, had gone pandal-hopping with friends that night. Vinod said they had initially planned to visit pandals in neighbouring Salt Lake but later changed their plans to central and north Kolkata.
He said that he received news of the stampede from one of his daughter’s friends around 8 pm and rushed to the hospital, only to learn that she had died. He has been waiting outside the hospital morgue since then to take his daughter’s body home.
Barnali’s close friend, 17-year-old Tania Biswas, was also among the dead.
A family member said Tania’s mother had always been reluctant to let her daughter go anywhere alone but had made an exception this time. The family is now struggling to come to terms with her death.
According to her relatives, Tania had left home saying she would visit pandals in Salt Lake. Her family did not know she would go to Chorbagan.
Saurav Mondal of Kumartuli had looked forward to spending Saptami night with his mother, visiting pandals and enjoying good food. Now, he waits outside the morgue to take her body home.
Recounting the tragedy, he said people were rushing out of the pandal amid rain and a crowd surge when several stumbled and fell, with others falling on top of them.
“When rescuers finally pulled my mother out, it was all over. She had died. I could not save her,” he said.
He alleged that no police personnel or volunteers were present at the exit to control the crowd. While pointing to rain as a contributing factor, Mondal claimed that timely intervention could have prevented the tragedy.
Several eyewitnesses alleged that announcements about entry, exit and crowd movement at the pandal were inadequate, leaving visitors confused as the crowd surged. Locals also claimed that police deployment at the pandal was inadequate, with many personnel stationed near the VIP entrance.
Sudama Raut was another bereaved parent waiting for his daughter’s body. Akriti Kumari, a Class 10 student, was among those killed.
“Akriti had gone out with friends and relatives. I received the news of her death around 8 pm,” said Raut, a native of Bihar who has lived in Kolkata for the past 20 years.
The tragedy also claimed the life of 19-year-old Priya Samaddar of Uttar Jogendranagar in North 24 Parganas district.
A college student, Priya had come to Kolkata with friends to visit Durga Puja pandals. On Sunday, her cousin was at the hospital morgue to complete the formalities.
Mihirbaran Jana broke down while speaking about his colleague, Dilip Ghosh, who died along with his wife, Dipali Ghosh. Jana had accompanied the couple’s son to the hospital.
Recalling his last conversation with Dilip just a day earlier, Jana said, “It was a routine conversation. I cannot imagine that I will never see him at work again.
For Ram Biswas of Chakdaha in Nadia district, Saturday evening is a memory he may never escape. He had come to Kolkata with his wife, Arati Sarkar Biswas, to visit the puja pandals.
He survived the stampede but could not save his wife.
Biswas said the situation deteriorated when it began to rain, and the ropes used to regulate the crowd were removed. People surged into the darkened pandal, triggering a crush as the crowd pushed and shoved. He and his wife fell to the ground.
“I somehow managed to get up and tried to pull my wife up by her hand, but I couldn’t. My wife died right before my eyes. I could do nothing,” he said.
(PTI News)
