Kolkata stampede

October 19, 2026 3:13 PM

Mahashtami marked by early morning anjali at puja pandals across Bengal

People thronged Durga Puja pandals across Kolkata and the districts of West Bengal in the early hours of Monday to offer anjali on Mahashtami, in keeping the prescribed timing of the rituals this year. From community pandals in the metropolis to traditional household celebrations and heritage shrines in the districts, devotees in new festive attire arrived in the pandals as priests led the chanting of mantras and hymns in praise of Goddess Durga. The early start saw worshippers gather at sever...

October 18, 2026 5:30 PM

HM Amit Shah visits hospital to meet those injured in Kolkata Durga Puja pandal stampede

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday morning visited a private hospital where 14 of those injured in the Durga Puja pandal stampede in north Kolkata were undergoing treatment, a senior official said. HM Shah, who was accompanied by West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, spoke to the doctors and reviewed the treatment of the injured, he said. The Home Minister also interacted with three patients undergoing treatment at the facility, the state government official said. https://x.com/Am...

October 18, 2026 9:31 AM

Kolkata stampede: PM Modi announces ex gratia, Amit Shah to visit injured

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief and announced financial assistance after at least 19 people died and 25 were injured in a stampede at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal in north Kolkata on Saturday evening. The stampede followed a crowd surge amid rain at the pandal. “The stampede in Kolkata is extremely distressing. My thoughts are with those who have lost their loved ones. May the injured recover at the earliest,” PM Modi said in a post on X. He said the local admin...