Chennai airshow deaths — an avoidable tragedy

In July, 121 persons, most of them women, died in a stampede at a religious function in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh. The tragedy was blamed on poor crowd management. The Hathras incident was not the first of its kind, of course, and questions were raised about the administration’s callous approach to dealing with the crowd that had gathered to listen to preacher Surajpal alias Bhole Baba.

Poor crowd management at festivals, religious events, and even public functions in the past had resulted in stampedes, causing a large number of deaths: In November and December 2005, a stampede during the distribution of flood relief in Chennai resulted in several fatalities. Much had been said after these tragedies, and citizens assured by the State that never will these happen again.

Chennai, Oct 06 (ANI): Tamilnadu Fire and Rescue Service personnel evacuate a teen after he fainted due to heat during the Indian Air Force (IAF) airshow as part of the 92nd anniversary celebrations of IAF, at Marina Beach in Chennai on Sunday. (ANI Photo) (Lakshmi)