The stampede at the Venkateswara Swamy temple in Kasibugga, Srikakulam, on Saturday, is the nth reminder to administrators, police and organisers that they should regard crowd management as a science or specialised field. Only then will they be able to plan and act accordingly. ScienceDirect describes crowd science as “a multidisciplinary field of study that focuses on understanding the behaviour of crowds and developing strategies to ensure their safety in various settings.” The temple mishap, which claimed nine lives, including women and a child, seems typical. There was a surge in the number of devotees, which caused a railing to break. A stampede followed. Equally typical has been the aftermath: the temple authorities and local cops trading allegations and counter-allegations. Only thorough investigation can find the people responsible for the accident, but it seems certain that planning was not proper for the crowd size that day. The temple usually gets 10,000 to 15,000 worshippers on Saturdays, but on this occasion, Ekadashi, there was a turnout of about 25,000 devotees. The unexpected numbers may have triggered the tragedy. Still, the point is that the organisers and police should have anticipated this for sudden and unanticipated surges at temples and other public gatherings that happen quite frequently.

In June, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) cricket team’s IPL victory celebrations in Bengaluru triggered a mad rush near the approach road to Chinnaswamy Stadium; a dozen were reportedly killed. The causes were inadequate planning, poor coordination between the organisers and administrators, and political theatrics. In February, there was a stampede at the New Delhi railway station, which killed 18 people.

An unusually high number of Kumbh pilgrims were trying to board a Prayagraj-bound train. Weeks before that, another pandemonium had claimed 30 people at the Sangam area in Prayagraj. There have been some prominent stampede cases this year. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, there have been around 4,000 stampede events since 1996; that is, every third day there is a stampede in India. It is not that institutional mechanisms are not in place. The Central government has constituted various bodies like the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), the State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA), the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), and the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM). In other words, the mechanisms are not only present but well-structured at all levels—Central, state, and district.

While NDMA, SDMA and the DDMA are mandated to lay down the policies, plans and guidelines, the NIDM is responsible for planning and promoting training and research. Also, there is no dearth of information and experience. An 11-year-old NDMA manual mentions, “A mere glance through the list of causes of crowd disasters suggests that most of them are man made, which can be completely prevented with proactive and holistic planning and flawless execution. A thorough assessment of arrangements made at places of mass gathering… should dramatically reduce the chances of a disaster.” It is unfortunate that the authorities concerned, with all their knowledge and experience, are unable to tackle the problem of stampedes. People in a vibrant democracy will gather in large numbers at public places on religious, political, or other social occasions. Officials at all levels and organisers should ensure the safety of the gatherings. The blame game, as witnessed after the Kasibugga tragedy, will not help anyone.