KOLKATA: "My mother died before my eyes; I too might not have survived," said 25-year-old Sonu Pal, still in shock after his mother died in a stampede at a Durga Puja pandal in the rain-soaked city on Saturday evening.
His mother was among the 17 people who died in the incident on Saturday evening. About 25 others were injured.
Pal, a resident of Kumortuli, had gone to see the puja with his mother when a sudden downpour began.
"It was raining outside, and nobody wanted to step outside. People who were standing at the entrance to escape the rain kept pushing to get in," he said. Pal said the pressure soon became unbearable.
"Unable to handle the pressure, everybody inside fell on one another," he recounted.
He said he, too, was caught in the pile-up. "I was also trapped under the crowd. I somehow managed to steady myself and went to my mother, but she was no longer there," Pal said.
The incident took place around 7.40 pm in the Girish Park police station area. Kolkata Police said all the injured were rescued and shifted to Medical College and Hospital.
