Shirgao: The Goa government-appointed Fact-Finding Investigation Committee to probe the May 3 temple stampede in North Goa has concluded that “the tragedy was entirely preventable.”
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had made public the salient features of this committee, which was led by State Revenue Secretary Sandip Jacques.
Six people died and around 100 were injured in a stampede during the annual festival of the Sri Lairai Devi Temple at Shirgao village in North Goa.
The Fact-Finding Investigation Committee has concluded that the tragedy was entirely preventable and stemmed from a combination of poor planning, lack of enforcement, ignored directives, and inadequate infrastructure, as per the report, a copy of which is with GNH.
The committee has also provided recommendations to ensure that such incidents do not occur in the future.
“Based on the field visits, interactions with eyewitnesses, injured victims, organisers, executive magistrates, police officials, and a review of the available records, the committee found that the stampede was precipitated by a confluence of preventable lapses and oversights among key stakeholders,” the report reads.
The committee found that the immediate cause of the stampede was overcrowding on the pathway from Tali (Holy Pond) to Homkhand (Holy Fire), particularly at the upper end of the sloped gradient near the RBL Bank Branch, Shirgao, aggravated by the unruly behaviour of the dhonds (devotees) and lack of proper crowd control measures at that location.
“The crowd [dhonds] was permitted to enter the pathway from Tali in groups, which were subsequently channelled into a two-by-two queue formation after the end of the sloped gradient leading towards Homkhand,” the report mentions.
The committee said this arrangement resulted in a build-up of people on the sloped section, causing overcrowding in that area.
“The overcrowding, coupled with attempts by some groups of dhonds to push forward through the crowd and their unruly behaviour, caused instability among devotees walking along the slope,” the report stated.
“As a result, it was understood that a person fell face-first on the sloped section, triggering a chain reaction in which several people behind and around her lost their balance and fell over one another,” the committee added.
The committee said, “Owing to the downward slope, limited visibility, and the push of the crowd and unruly behaviour, the people approaching from behind were unaware of the fall and continued moving forward, leading to the stampede.”
The five-member committee, comprising senior administrative and police officers, said that the stampede could likely have been averted with proper planning, risk assessment, and the implementation of effective crowd management strategies.
The report further mentions that during the inquiry, some injured victims informed the committee that a minor incident of a similar nature had allegedly occurred in the past, wherein one of the devotees suffered a critical arm injury on the day of the Homkhand.
“In another case last year, a woman allegedly died due to suffocation at the sloped section of the pathway. However, the committee did not find any record to substantiate such an incident,” the report reads.
It further adds, “Notwithstanding the absence of official records, the committee is of the view that the key stakeholders, including the organisers, district administration, and district police, should have reviewed past occurrences and undertaken adequate precautionary measures to prevent such untoward incidents.”
