WR observes silent Diwali to honour Parel-Elphinstone stampede victims

Mumbai: The Western Railway (WR) has stuck to its promise of celebrating this Diwali without fanfare and firecrackers as a mark of respect to the 23 who lost their lives in the Parel-Elphinstone Road stampede of September 29. Staff members and railway officers only lit candles at the railways’ Churchgate and Mumbai Central offices on Wednesday, a day on which they celebrated Diwali as Thursday is a public holiday.

The Asian Age was the first to report on October 6 (‘Western Railway axes Diwali bash in wake of tragedy’) that the WR has asked its officials to suspend all celebrations during the festive season and has also suspended the cultural programmes like skits and musical performances. 

A WR official said on Wednesday, “We lit candles as a way to honour the people who lost their lives and to say that we have not forgotten that fateful day.”

Several versions have emerged as to what exactly happened on that day. It has come to light that the use of the word ‘phool padlee’ (the flowers have fallen) allegedly by a flower seller was mistaken by those on the foot overbridge (FOB) for ‘pool gir gaya’ (the bridge has fallen). Due tot this, panic spread on the FOB and led to the stampede.

WR officials are also considering asking the state for manpower in order to manage the crowd on FOBs and platforms during peak hours and festive seasons as they are falling short of Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel to deal with the rush.