Saturday, February 7, 2026
ADVT 
India

Toll in Patna stampede rises to 33, probe begins

Darpan News Desk IANS, 04 Oct, 2014 09:25 AM
    The toll in a stampede after the burning of the Ravana effigy at the Gandhi Maidan here rose to 33 Saturday after the death of a child, an official said.
     
    "The condition of at least five seriously injured people is critical," a Patna district official said.
     
    Thirty-two people, including women and children, had died in the stampede Friday evening. 
     
    Bihar Police said 29 people are seriously injured and undergoing treatment at the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) here.
     
    Additional Director General of Police Gupteshwar Pandey said that he, along with Principal Home Secretary Amir Shubani, visited the spot to inquire into the cause of the stampede.
     
    "We have formally began an inquiry into the cause of the stampede that resulted in deaths of so many people, mostly women and children," Pandey told reporters.
     
    Pandey said police have been scanning the CCTV footage also.
     
    Water Resources Minister Vijay Choudhary said the state government would take action against officials if they are found guilty. "Action would be initiated after the inquiry," he said.
     
    In view of the incident, Urban Development Minister Samrat Choudhary has cancelled his England visit.
     
    Meanwhile, a group of angry people Saturday protested at the Ramghulam square near Gandhi Maidan. They attacked and damaged half a dozen vehicles, forcing police to resort to lathi charge to disperse them.
     
    Additional security forces have been deployed to deal with protestors.
     
    "Rapid Action Force and Bihar Military Police were deployed at Gandhi Maidan and nearby areas...," a police official said.
     
    Health Minister Ramdhani Singh visited the PMCH and met injured people.
     
    According to district officials, rumours that a live high tension wire had fallen to the ground led to the stampede.
     
    Patna District Magistrate Manish Kumar Verma and Patna Senior Superintendent of Police Manu Maharaj at a joint press meet here Saturday ruled out administrative lapses.
     
    "Most of the people died due to suffocation and breathlessness during stampede," Verma said.
     
    Both claimed that four gates of Gandhi Maidan were opened and there was adequate arrangement.

    MORE India ARTICLES

    To study or not to study English: India debates

    To study or not to study English: India debates
    Nearly two centuries after Lord Macaulay championed the introduction of English as a medium of education in India in 1835, a debate is still raging on the...

    To study or not to study English: India debates

    Disaster Management: SC to hear plea over gurdwaras in Haryana

    Disaster Management: SC to hear plea over gurdwaras in Haryana
    The Supreme Court will Thursday hear a petition seeking the quashing of the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara (Management) Act, 2014, contending that it was ultra...

    Disaster Management: SC to hear plea over gurdwaras in Haryana

    HSGPC Row: Haryana SGPC members clash with police in Kurukshetra

    HSGPC Row: Haryana SGPC members clash with police in Kurukshetra
    Tension prevailed in a part of Kurukshetra town in Haryana as members of the newly-created Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (HSGPC) Wednesday...

    HSGPC Row: Haryana SGPC members clash with police in Kurukshetra

    Modi struck the right notes in Nepal, says daily

    Modi struck the right notes in Nepal, says daily
    Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi struck all the right notes during his maiden visit to Nepal, a leading Nepali daily said...

    Modi struck the right notes in Nepal, says daily

    Chacha Chaudhary creator Pran is dead

    Chacha Chaudhary creator Pran is dead
    Pran Kumar Sharma, creator of iconic comic book characters like Chacha Chaudhary and Sabu, is dead. He was 75, his family said Wednesday...

    Chacha Chaudhary creator Pran is dead

    Threefold surge in male teenage drinking in India: Study

    Threefold surge in male teenage drinking in India: Study
    Revealing an alarming trend, a team led by an Indian-origin researcher has reported a threefold surge in the number of male teenagers drinking...

    Threefold surge in male teenage drinking in India: Study