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A stampede at New Delhi Railway Station

Stampede has finally happened at the New Delhi Railway Station and it feels to me like the volcano that was bursting to come out for sooo long and has finally spewed out some of it's fire.

The New Delhi railway station, the main rail station of the Capital of our country is symbolic of how careless and unsympathetic we Indians are. It has two entrances. One is from Paharganj side and the other is the Ajmeri Gate side. I have been in and out of both the gates on many occasions I have visited Delhi through train. I have grown up but the station has not. It is as chaotic today, than through so many years of my visit.

Last time I was their was incidentally the longest I ever have been to the New Delhi Station ( NDLS). On 12th April, I had to come back to Ludhiana from Delhi and had booked my ticket for a train called Gareeb Rath. It was 3-4 hours late. Pathetic conditions on the station literally depressed me. I think each and every long distance train was late. Only the rajdhanis and shatabdis run on time I think.

So what happens? People are stranded in large quantities on all 16 platforms of the station. The delay of trains causes frequent changing of probable platforms on which the train might come and chaos reigns like a King. The same happened with the stampede that happened. On a short notice, the platforms were changed and the waiting people just rushed in.

What else can do the passenger do? A train that comes late will have to cut down on the time that was to be the stop over. So lets say, a train stops at the station for 10 minutes. If it is very late, it will stop for only say 5 minutes. So people push and rush. No other option. They have been waiting for so long on a filthy station and now are eager to start their journey.

And the condition of the station I think has been plagiarized by Hitler's idea of a war camp. It's that bad. Announcements that are happening often do not confirm with the electronic display boards, installed on various locations. Water supply is more meant to waste than to provide. Que for tickets and inquiry is too long. Toilets, well you got the point anyway.


It is pathetic and it is sad. Whole of New Delhi is being refurbished and polished to welcome foreigners for the Commonwealth Games. That's the priority. But what about us? We who frequent the city in routine to meet friends and family? We are nothing to the people of Delhi?
For it is the representative of the people who run that railway station. So my questions will direct to the people and public of India. What are you all thinking? Do you really deserve this? Did those people deserve to die, who only wanted to get on with their journey. Most probably to their homes.

The whole episode does not upset or shock me very much. I was their once. My train was to arrive at platform no. 10, but it was late so I went to the waiting room that was on platform no.16. Then I came to knew that train will now come on platform 1. Then they announced that platform should be 2, for shatabdi needed the platform 1.

When I heard the story, I could live the ordeal of the people for real. Its sad though that the people of India have brought such bad state to public services like railways, so well made by Britishers.

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