19 dead in Kolkata puja pandal stampede, CM says organisers detained

At least 19 people died, and several others were injured in a stampede at the Chorebagan Durga Puja pandal in north Kolkata following a crowd surge amid rain on Saturday evening, the day of Maha Saptami. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who rushed to the Kolkata Medical College and Hospital, where the victims were taken, also announced that his government will provide Rs 25 lakh and a Group D govt job for the family of each deceased. Rs 5 lakh will also be given to each injured person, and the entire treatment cost at any hospital of their choice will be borne by the government, he added. "An SIT headed by a sitting judge of the Calcutta High Court will investigate the incident. The SIT will comprise members from STF, CID and other departments," he said. He said the government will write to the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court to depute a sitting judge for the probe.

#WATCH | Kolkata | West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari says, "At around 7.30 PM, a tragic incident occurred at a popular puja in Kolkata's Chorbagan Sarbojanin. In this tragic incident, 19 people have died so far, most of whom are girls and children. This is a very painful incident, and 25 people have also sustained injuries; their treatment is ongoing. 24 of them are out of danger, while one is critical. We are providing the best possible medical treatment. Following this incident, I immediately came to the Medical College along with the entire government administration... The place of occurrence has been sealed. The forensic team, STF, and fire brigade are conducting the initial investigation there. This happened partly due to the rain, and there were also some shortcomings in the arrangements made by the puja committee inside. The Kolkata Police AFS is studying the CCTV footage. Whoever is found negligent will face legal action. The Prime Minister has been informed about this. The Home Minister is himself in Kolkata, and is personally monitoring the situation. Tomorrow, the Home Minister's and all our programs have been cancelled... Across the entire state, 58,000 pujas are taking place, and we are taking steps to ensure no such incident happens anywhere else. Initially, we have declared compensation of Rs 25 lakh from the state government and a job for every family that lost a loved one. For all the injured, the full responsibility for their medical treatment has been taken by the state government, and we will provide Rs 5 lakh as compensation to each of them. So far, I have personally met with 10 bereaved families. Even though it is midnight, I am still standing with the victim families, alongside ministers, MLAs, the police, and the Chief Secretary. Under the leadership of a sitting judge of the Kolkata High Court, we will form a fact-finding committee, and the government will take action based on its recommendations." (Source: CMO)

— ANI (@ANI) October 17, 2026

Anti-Rowdy Section (ARS) of Kolkata Police have collected CCTV footage of that place during the mishap.Local says crowd crush at Chorbagan pandal unprecedented in 91 years.

Kolkata, West Bengal: On the stampede-like situation at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal, a local says, "This has never happened before in the 91 years of this puja. This is the first time such an incident has occurred. Suddenly, it started raining, and because of the rain, some people slipped and fell, leading to a bit of a crowd crush. Some people may have sustained minor injuries..."

— IANS (@ians_india) October 17, 2026

According to a police officer, as it started raining, the crowd waiting outside the pandal rushed forward, and some of them fell on the road, leading to the stampede. Meanwhile, the administration has advised several crowd-pulling theme pujas to temporarily close down their pandals following the incident. There are nearly 3500 pandals to celebrate Durga Puja in Kolkata.
The state government launched a helpline 18003455678. The Kolkata Police launched another helpline 03322141310. “The incident took place around 7:30 pm. The crowd at the pandal was already swelling. As it started to rain more people entered the pandal. This resulted in a stampede. Several people were injured,” Dipali Das, a pandal hopper, told the media.
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and several others condoled the tragedy. "The news of the deaths of people in a Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata is extremely sad. I express my deepest condolences to all the bereaved families. I pray for the swift recovery of those who have been injured," the President said in a post on X in Hindi.
Modi described the stampede as "extremely distressing" and announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured. "The stampede in Kolkata is extremely distressing. My thoughts are with those who have lost their loved ones. May the injured recover at the earliest," Modi said in a post on X. The Prime Minister said the local administration is providing all possible assistance to those affected.
Shah, who arrived here in the evening and was scheduled to visit the puja pandals on Sunday, said he is postponing his scheduled programmes in the wake of the stampede and will visit those injured in the incident.