Elphinstone stampede: Rs 40,000 compensation not enough to pay medical bills, say victims

Several people who were injured during the Elphinstone Road railway station stampede have said that the Rs 40,000 they received for treatment as compensation from the railway claims tribunal was not enough, Mumbai Mirror reported.

On 29 September, 2017, 23 people died in a stampede on the staircase of a narrow Foot Over-Bridge at the station during the morning rush hour.

The Railway Claims Tribunal, Mumbai, on Tuesday awarded compensation to 36 victims, which included 17 death and 19 injury cases, of the Elphinstone foot over bridge stampede, the railways said March 13.

Elphinstone station is usually crowded during the peak hours as it caters to office-goers in the Lower Parel area. The station, on the Western Line of the Mumbai suburban rail network, also connects to Parel station on the Central line.

Five months after 23 people died in a stampede at suburban Elphinstone Road railway station, a new Foot Over Bridge (FOB) constructed by the Army was thrown open to the public on February 27.

The FoBs were constructed by the Army Engineers in a record 117 days.

Acknowledging the feat, both Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis thanked the Army for its contribution and completion of the FOBs in record time.

Last month, a DNA report also highlighted the dangers at Mumbai's Jogeshwari station. The narrow foot over bridges (FOBs) and their stairs leads to overcrowding and stampede-like situations. Earlier this month, railway officials themselves had written a letter warning the authorities about the stampede-like situations at Jogeshwari station.