Rajamahendravaram: The failure to archive CCTV footage of the Godavari Pushkaram stampede last year is not the only astounding claim made by the administration to the Justice C Y Somayajulu Commission, which is probing the tragedy.
More than 10 months after the stampede, police here have said they could not investigate the tragedy fully because hospital authorities in Rajamahendravaram did not give them the list of injured pilgrims.
The police of East Godavari district are conducting their own investigation into the stampede that claimed 27 lives on July 14 last year. This is in addition to the Somayajulu probe.
Police officials are blaming the authorities at the Government General Hospital (GGH) of Rajamahendravaram for not handing over the list of injured pilgrims who underwent treatment at the hospital after the tragedy. They allege that the district administration did not provide them the names of personnel on-duty at the Pushkar Ghat when the incident occurred.
Speaking to Express, the investigating officer, Amalapuram deputy
superintendent of police L Ankaiah said about 203 witnesses have been questioned as part of their probe but more people are yet to be quizzed. "As part of the inquiry, we have to question the staff of various departments who were on duty at that time," he said. Incidentally, private hospitals like Bollineni Hospitals, GSL Hospital and Help Hospital have already submitted their reports on the number of people treated by them after that tragedy, police said.
Authorities at GGH Rajamahendravaram, however, rubbished the police claim.
"As required under the rules, we submitted a list of 53 injured victims to the Rajamahendravaram Urban mandal revenue officer (MRO). In fact, the request for a list of injured pilgrims came to us from the Revenue Department, which would in turn forward it to the police. I do not know whether they did so or not," GGH superintendent T Ravi Kishore said.
The MRO could not be reached for comment. He was on leave and his staff said they did not know whether or not their boss forwarded the list to the police. East Godavari collector H Arun Kumar could not be reached too as he was busy making arrangements for chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu's visit to the district later this week.
Rajamahendravaram Urban superintendent of police B Rajakumari, who joined duty on Monday, stated that she would study the case before responding on it.