Knowledge Nugget: Stampedes and NDMA Guidelines — What you must know for the UPSC exam

Why in the news?

A stampede at actor-politician and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay’s rally in Karur on Saturday (September 27) claimed 41 lives, triggering outrage, arrests, and political crossfire. The instances of stampedes in India have earlier unfolded at places of worship, sporting events, railway stations, and at large-scale gatherings such as the Maha Kumbh. Nearly 90 people are reported to have lost their lives since the beginning of this year in such event-linked crushes. In this context, let’s understand what a stampede is, the factors that lead to stampedes and the NDMA guidelines for crowd management in India.

Key Takeaways :

1. According to the NCRB’s report titled ‘Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India,’ from 2000 to 2022, 3,074 lives had been lost in stampedes. Nearly 4,000 stampede events have been recorded over the last three decades. The NCRB has been collecting data on stampede incidents across India since 1996. 

2. Wenguo Weng and others define a stampede as “an impulsive mass movement of a crowd that often results in injuries and deaths” (“Review of analyses on crowd-gathering risk and its evaluation methods”, 2023).

3. Stampede is the surge of individuals in a crowd, in response to a perceived danger or loss of physical space. It often disrupts the orderly movement of crowds resulting in irrational and dangerous movement for self-protection leading to injuries and fatalities.

4. Stampedes have high mortality rates and are, along with heat-related illnesses, the most common causes of death at mass gatherings.

Two Types of Stampedes

K M Ngai and others classify two types of stampedes on the basis of movement — unidirectional or turbulent (“Human Stampedes: A Systematic Review of Historical and Peer-Reviewed Sources”, 2009). 

1. Unidirectional stampede events may occur when a crowd moving in the same direction encounters a sudden positive or negative change in force which alters its movement. A positive force can be a “sudden stop” situation like a bottleneck and blocked exit, whereas a negative force would be something like a broken barrier or column which sends a group of people tumbling.

2. Turbulent stampede events can occur in situations with uncontrolled crowds, induced panic, or crowds merging from numerous directions.

Factors Leading to Stampedes

According to nidm.gov.in, stampedes occur due to a lack of (i) understanding of crowd behaviour, (ii) coordination, (iii) clear roles & responsibilities of various stakeholders, and (iv) proper planning on the part of organizers. Some of the factors leading to stampedes are:

1. Human Psychology: Human psychology is an important factor leading to stampedes, as all stampedes are either triggered or made worse by panic.

2. Structural Issues: In addition to human psychology, the structural issues play a significant role in contributing to stampedes. Chun-Hao Shao and others have listed a number of factors in their paper “Stampede Events and Strategies for Crowd Management” (2018) that lead to human stampedes. These include:

• Lack of light
• Crowd flow not being divided for different crowds
• Collapse of barriers, buildings
• Blocked exits, evacuation route
• Poor design of hardware (such as a revolving door at the entrance)
• Fire hazards

3. High Crowd Density: Crowd density, defined as the number of people per unit area, plays a crucial role in determining how spaces for mass gatherings should be organized. When the crowd density exceeds the available space, it can create panic among attendees, especially if crowd management is lacking. This situation can sometimes lead to dangerous outcomes, such as stampedes.

NDMA Guidelines for Crowd Management in India

1. Crowd management is a systematic process of planning, organizing and monitoring large gatherings. Such management must be anticipated and planned accordingly for the worst situation and therefore should strategise to reduce and mitigate the risks in advance.

2. Recognising the issue of recurring stampedes at mass gatherings, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has issued guidelines for crowd management. The objective of these guidelines is to assist all stakeholders, including state governments, local authorities, and organisers/administrators of events and venues of mass gatherings, in overall planning and establishing required systems for effective crowd management.

(i) For effective management of the crowd, an effective method for counting and monitoring visitors passing through a staging point should be implemented to manage the flow. Ensure that there are designated physical or virtual locations that each visitor must pass through. 

(ii) Each staging point should provide adequate facilities for resting, eating, drinking water, and maintaining hygiene. Additionally, it is important to encourage multiple routes to enhance visitor movement and reduce congestion.

(iii) During the crowd control focus should be on managing the demand-supply gap through: 

(a) controlling crowd inflow, 

(b) regulating crowd movement at the venue, 

(c) managing crowd outflow if necessary.

Integrated Approach for Crowd management. (Source: Guide for Managing Crowd at Events and Venues of Mass Gathering by NDMA)

(iv) Conducting Hazard, Risk and Vulnerability analysis (HRVA) for mass gathering locations, along with pre-event scenarios can provide a foundation for preparing for all three phases of any severe incident: response, recovery, and mitigation.

(v) The HRVA can facilitate the creation of a decision support system that can enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of rescue and relief operations during crowd-related disaster scenarios.

BEYOND THE NUGGET: Why do stampedes kill?

1. Most stampede casualties are caused by traumatic asphyxia — there is partial or complete cessation of respiration due to external compression of the thorax and/or upper abdomen. 

2. Other possible reasons for stampede-related deaths include myocardial infarction (heart attack, caused by decreased or complete cessation of blood flow to a portion of the heart), direct crushing injury to internal organs, head injuries, and neck compression.

Post Read Question

With reference to traumatic asphyxia, consider the following statements:

1. It occurs when extreme pressure is applied to the lower body or lower abdomen.

2. Preventing traumatic asphyxia involves ensuring proper safety measures in high-risk environments, avoiding overcrowding, and implementing effective emergency response strategies.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

(Sources: Hathras stampede kills over 100: Why stampedes take place, UPSC Issue at a Glance | How to prevent stampedes at mass gatherings)

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