Life is limping back to its normalcy at the New Delhi Railway Station on Sunday with passengers boarding trains bound for their respective destinations after the tragic stampede on Saturday night that claimed 18 lives and leaving several others injured.

People in droves could be seen jostling with each other to reach the platforms assigned to their respective trains in a tearing hurry and many others alighting or opting for a forward journey to reach their homes and hearth while yet others on their way to the Maha Kumbh at Prayagraj.

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A stampede broke out on platform number 14-15 of the station at around 9:50 pm last night with a horde of passengers scampering in frenzy to board a Prayagraj-bound train. The incident left 18 people dead and several others injured, as per official estimate.

The station administration, in a bid to manage the crowd, put in place measures like allowing entry for those bound for Prayagraj from the Ajmeri Gate side of the NDLS with ropes tied between pillars at the platform from a certain distance to control excessive crowds.

However, most of the passengers do not seem to be oblivious of the tragedy that occurred at the very place they landed only yesterday. However, the ones who had seen it all like the porters and vendors were found in a somber mood having witnessed the fateful incident. Some of the eyewitnesses recount the stampede was triggered by a massive influx of passengers arriving at the station to board special trains for the Mahakumbh in Prayagraj.

According to a vendor at the station, a sudden crowd surge led some passengers to faint on the spot, triggering a stampede-like situation that heightened the panic.

He said the confusion among the passengers between ‘Prayagraj Express and Prayagraj Special’ following an announcement and the fear of missing the train led to the tragedy.

Following the stampede, rescue agencies were pressed into the service removing the dead bodies and shifting the injured to the hospitals.

According to a porter, people mostly sustained injuries in their abdomen or chest while some sustained injuries in their knees.

A porter, not wanting to reveal his identity, claimed that the deaths in the stampede may have been more than what the official numbers make it out to be. He said he personally helped take out dead bodies from the train.

In the wake of yesterday’s incident, the administration has enhanced precautionary