The toll in the stampede at actor-turned-politician Vijay’s rally in Karur, Tamil Nadu on Saturday, rose to 40 on Sunday. Among the deceased were children and women also. The Karur tragedy, just few months after the Bengaluru stampede resulted in 11 casualties, raises serious questions on event planning and effective crowd management in the country to prevent such tragedies, that leave several families broken and distraught. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Sunday expressed grief over the Karur stampede that took place due to massive overcrowding. Reflecting to the incident, Tharoor said such tragedies point out flaws in the country’s crowd management. Referring to the Bengaluru stampede which killed 11, the Kerala MP added that it was painful and agonising to see such tragedies recur.
Tharoor called on both the central and state governments to create strict rules and safety protocols for large gatherings to prevent such tragedies in future.
“Its a very tragic and painful situation. Something is wrong in our country with crowd management. Every year, there seems to be an incident. We remember Bengaluru. It is very heartbreaking when we hear children being killed in these stampedes,” Tharoor told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.
‘Time for very strict procedures to govern large crowds’
“For me, the argument is about what can we do as a systematic policy nationally to protect ordinary people. People go in a spirit to listen to a politician who happens to be a movie star, or to see cricketers, who are also stars for us, the basic thing should be that there should be certain rules, standards, and protocols in place,” he said.
“I earnestly appeal to the central government and all state governments to agree on a set of very strict procedures governing all large crowds in any circumstances so that we do not needlessly suffer the grief and anguish of loved ones being lost in these terrible stampedes,” Tharoor added.
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WATCH: Tamil Nadu: Massive Stampede at Vijay’s TVK Rally Leaves 39 Dead, Dozens Injured
40 killed after stampede at Vijay's TVK Rally
The tragedy at the rally addressed by Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president and actor Vijay in Karur, left 40 people dead and nearly 70 injured.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex-gratia amount of two lakh rupees from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund for the families of the victims. Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin announced an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakhs for the kin of the deceased.
Actor Vijay also pledged an amount of ₹20 lakhs to the victims’ families.
Tamil Nadu DGP G Venkatraman said on Saturday that the crowd at the venue was much more than what was sought in the permission. He specified that permission was sought for a gathering of 10,000 people, but the crowd swelled to 27,000 people.
