After Kolkata crush, Odisha and Bengal tighten crowd rules at Durga Puja pandals

Police in Odisha and the West Bengal government announced tighter crowd-management measures at Durga Puja pandals on October 18 and 19, after a crowd crush at a Kolkata pandal on October 17 killed 19 people, according to the reports below.

Odisha: queue-based entry

On Sunday, October 18, Odisha's acting director general of police, Vinaytosh Mishra, directed puja organizers to arrange safe movement for devotees and to run queue-based darshan, called dhadi darshan, at their pandals, Odisha Bytes reported. The same report says police will be deployed at every pandal with help from puja committee volunteers, large numbers of people will not be allowed inside a pandal at one time, and entry to a pandal will be closed if someone falls inside. Mishra was quoted as saying that when a large crowd passes through a narrow passage, a stampede-like situation is always possible.

IG (Central Range) Satyajit Naik asked organizers to follow administration guidelines and warned people against circulating unverified messages, photos or videos. OdishaTV reported that police were making arrangements for Cuttack, Jajpur and Kendrapara, which Naik described as sensitive districts, and that the Bhubaneswar-Cuttack Police Commissioner, S. Dev Datta Singh, said people should not rely solely on police for their safety.

On Monday, October 19, Odisha Bytes reported that Bhubaneswar's Urban Police District and the state fire services, home guards and civil defense held a mock drill on first aid and evacuation. Eight Special Rescue Unit teams, each with four to five trained members, are posted at key spots in the capital, which has about 193 pandals. The report says the police commissioner said primary responsibility for devotee safety rests with the committees, and that guidelines cover volunteers and CCTV, with strict action threatened for lapses. It also says Naik directed superintendents in seven districts to curb overcrowding and manage crowds seeking shelter from rain.

West Bengal: reviews and VIP gates

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari directed a detailed review of safety and crowd management at major Kolkata pandals, DNA India reported, citing PTI. A special team led by the state disaster management secretary, the Director General of Fire Services and an Additional Director General of the Special Task Force is to identify gaps and make decisions on the spot, including regulating visitor numbers where needed.

The report says the chief minister said the government may discontinue VIP gates and that entry and exit points must be clearly marked, with no separate VIP queues. The report's own headline says the gates are "likely" to go, but its text says "may", and no final decision had been announced at the time of writing. Many popular committees offer paid VIP access in peak hours, the report adds.

Fire services told organizers to clear unauthorized temporary commercial structures and hazardous stalls near pandals, and fire safety authorities issued notices to three major south Kolkata committees over alleged shortcomings, according to DNA India. Police station officers and district inspectors must visit pandals in their areas, prepare crowd-management guidelines and make sure committees comply.

What is not yet known

The reports read do not say whether Bengal will formally end VIP gates, or how Odisha will check compliance with the queue and capacity directions. The Kolkata investigation into the crush is ongoing.