There might be many reasons behind stampedes, including coordination failure or bad planning. But the prime responsibility of ensuring smooth conduct of public events falls on the shoulders of those organising it, Government Adviser (Public Affairs) Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy observed with The Hindu.
Referring to the two recent stampedes at Kandukur and Guntur, Mr. Ramakrishna Reddy said, “The organisers could create problems for the public if they don’t use the resources properly, and in some extreme cases, it could result in deaths. In recent incidents, people have lost their lives, which is unfortunate. When these kinds of incidents happen in Andhra Pradesh, it is natural that the State government responds properly and takes appropriate measures to prevent such man-made havoc in the future”.
‘It is a man-made disaster’
“The government has analysed the reasons behind both Kandukur and Guntur stampedes. After deeper analysis, the government realised that the two stampedes were man-made,” he said.
Mr. Ramakrishna Reddy further explained, “In the Kandukur incident, the roads were narrowed down by placing banners to take drone videos and photos, in order to portray that there was a mass gathering for the TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu’s meeting. Similarly, in the stampede in Guntur city, the failure of organisers to arrange proper barricades and making the crowd wait for long hours to obtain the gift kits they offered, changing the timings of the gift kit distribution and many other reasons came to light,” he explained.
In view of these unfortunate incidents, the government has taken a firm decision to make the organisers responsible for any such kind of incident in the future, he added.
‘Need to abide by the law’
It is easy to control situations when it is law-abiding citizens involved, the Government Adviser observed. He explained that, for instance, when Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy was in opposition, the same Guntur police denied permission to organise a public meeting and hunger strike. At that time, Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy did not organise the event in the heart of the city, opposite Government General Hospital, as he had planned and changed the venue to Nallapadu village, as suggested by the then police.
Neither Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy nor any other leader from the YSR Congress Party ever questioned the authorities when they told us that some of our meetings would cause problems for the public. Instead, we changed the venues or looked for alternatives when we were in the Opposition.
But now, the Opposition TDP is not acting like that, Mr. Ramakrishna Reddy criticised. They question the authorities, police and other government bodies if objections are raised for their meetings, he added.
Definitely, the government will take stringent steps to prevent such stampedes in the future, he said.
