After 19 Deaths in Pandal Stampede, Kolkata Deploys Nine Senior IPS Officers

A day after a stampede at a Durga Puja pandal in the Chorbagan area killed 19 people, the West Bengal government on Sunday decided to deploy nine Indian Police Service (IPS) officers with experience in managing Durga Puja crowds, a senior official said.

The officers assigned crowd-management duty are Sumanjit Ray, Inspector General (Border); Mehmud Akhtar, IG (Intelligence Branch); Miraj Khalid, IG (Traffic); Rupesh Kumar, Deputy Inspector General (Special Task Force); Shubhankar Bhattacharya, DIG (Traffic); Tarun Haldar, DIG (Criminal Investigation Department); Soumya Ray, Special Superintendent (Enforcement Branch); Priyabrata Ray, Superintendent of Police (Traffic); and Deepak Sarkar, Special Superintendent (CID).

"These officers have experience in handling huge crowds during Durga Puja in Kolkata. They have been brought back to help ensure proper crowd management and prevent a repeat of the Chorbagan incident," a senior official said.

The deployment comes amid concerns over crowd management and police deployment at pandals, and allegations of negligence against some puja organisers following the tragedy.

Kolkata Police also issued an 11-point advisory for its personnel, asking them to prevent untoward incidents at major pandals across the city.

Under the advisory, entry points to pandals must be closed when it rains, and visitors already inside must be brought out safely. No crowd will be allowed inside pandals during such conditions. Police personnel have been told not to leave their assigned posts even in the rain, and the movement of visitors must be regulated according to the situation at each venue.

Personnel have also been directed to ensure adequate lighting at the venues and to keep ropes, guardrails and small loudspeakers ready to manage crowds and respond to emergencies. Vehicles carrying VIPs will not be allowed up to the pandals and must be parked at a designated distance.

Police have been asked to monitor announcements made by puja organisers and to ensure that visitor routes are not changed abruptly. Every officer and constable is to coordinate with a team of five to six volunteers from each puja committee.

Seven people arrested in connection with the stampede have been remanded to 10-day police custody, the police said.

Durga Puja, which was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2021, draws lakhs of visitors to Kolkata's pandals every year. Managing crowds at large installations has long been a challenge for the city police, particularly on Saptami, Ashtami and Navami, when footfall peaks.

Officials said the advisory would apply to personnel posted at major pandals across the city through the festival days.