EDUMINDS : IB- ENGLISH Date-

16 killed in Haridwar stampede

Sweta Dutta , Sweta Dutta : Haridwar, Wed Nov 09 2011, 00:33 hrs

Sixteen people, including 14 women, were killed and over 50 injured in a stampede
here on Tuesday morning during a religious ceremony that was reportedly attended
by nearly two lakh people.

The Akhil Vishwa Gayatri Pariwar, the organisers of the five-day 'Mahayagya' to
mark the birth centenary of Acharya Pandit Shriram Sharma, claimed the incident
took place when devotees started gate-crashing at one of the exit points.

But SDM Harbir Singh said: "Prima facie it appears that suffocation in the area due
to smoke emanating from the yagya fireplaces led to the stampede, but the exact
cause of the incident can be confirmed only after an inquiry."

Eyewitnesses said the area was overcrowded since 4 am, an hour before the yagya
was scheduled to begin.

"There was barely any breathing space," said Saraswati Devi, 65, a survivor who
came to attend the ceremony from Danapur, Bihar. "As we were nearing the steps
leading to a foot overbridge, people started pushing from behind. After a woman
tripped and fell, others started panicking. I too fell down and became unconscious,"
she added.

Doctors at the base hospital said over 150 people came for treatment. "Since this is a
makeshift hospital and can accommodate only 100 patients, some were referred to
other city hospitals. However, the number of seriously injured would not be more
than five or seven," said a doctor.
District Magistrate Senthil Pandian has ordered a magisterial probe into the
incident. Pandian said most of the victims were from Jhansi, Munger and Sultanpur
areas of Uttar Pradesh.

Following instructions from the district administration, the organisers today

announced that the five-day ceremony would be curtailed, and would end on
Wednesday.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister B C Khanduri, who visited the mishap site, announced a
compensation of Rs 2 lakh for the kin of deceased. An equal amount was announced
as compensation by the organisers. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also
sanctioned Rs 1 lakh for the relatives of the victims and Rs 50,000 for those seriously
injured.

EDITORIAL

Another stampede
The Indian Express , The Indian Express : Thu Nov 10 2011, 02:52 hrs

A large gathering of pilgrims, a push from behind, a gate crash: many deaths, many
more injured. That this logical sequence leads to an inevitable stampede doesn't
evoke wonder. What shocks and provokes anger is the frequency of this sequence
completing itself, when nobody — organisers, police, local administration — can
claim to be blind to context and conditions. On Tuesday, 16 persons were killed and
50 injured in a stampede in Haridwar, while attending a religious ceremony where
an estimated two lakh people had gathered.

The five-day "mahayagya" may have been curtailed and a magisterial inquiry
ordered, yet connecting the dots of the stampede sequence is a missing link — absent
crowd managers. The police claim that the organisers of the ceremony, reportedly
the largest religious gathering after the Kumbh Mela, didn't involve them. If true,
that's inexcusable negligence. But do the police need permission from event
organisers to inspect a public gathering of two lakh people? As the Sabarimala
stampede exposed last January, India has done little — except, say, the odd chief
ministers' meet where the issue comes up as a consequence of discussing something
bigger — to think through and devise concrete solutions for handling large crowds.
Ideas have floated around, but hardly ever implemented. The twin needs of adequate
infrastructure to accommodate pilgrims and the deployment of crowd managers
ought to be administrative second nature. All too often they are not.

Therefore, behind every such tragedy, lies a bigger project — police reforms. Police
personnel must be trained and sensitised to not only manage large crowds but also
distinguish among different types of crowds. A pilgrimage and a protest are not the
same; yet both are always on the verge of crossing over the edge. Pilgrimage and
protest, as the largest crowd pullers, need more thought and action.

Purpose of the text

Report Editorial

Look at the following sentences from text paying attention to

voice used
i. A religious ceremony was attended by nearly two lakh people
ii. An equal amount was announced as compensation by organizers
iii. A makeshift hospital can accommodate only 100 patients
iv. Uttarakhand Chief Minister announced a compensation of first
two sentences.
A religious ceremony was attended by nearly two lakh people

An equal amount was announced as compensation by organizers

IN THESE TWO SENTENCES

SHOWCASING ACTION IS IMPORTANT

A makeshift hospital can accommodate only 100 patients

Uttarakhand Chief Minister announced a compensation of first

two sentences.

DOER OF THE ACTION IS IMPORTANT

Pick out 5 sentences in Active voice and Passive Voice