Kolkata, October 23: Two persons died and a dozen others, including two children, were injured in a stampede at a railway foot-overbridge at Santragachi station in Howrah on Tuesday. The stampede happened when passengers were rushing towards the platforms to board three trains that simultaneously arrived at Santragachi junction around 6:30 PM.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who rushed to the spot from Red Road where she was attending Puja Carnival, announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakhs to the family of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh to those injured in the stampede. "Two people were killed and 12 others injured in the incident. Two persons are critical, and one of them is in in the ICU, and we are shifting the other one to the SSKM hospital," she said. Elphinstone Stampede: One Year After Tragedy, Mumbaikars Come Together to Pay Tribute to Victims.

In the wake of the mishap, the Railways has issued two helpline numbers - Kharagpur: 032221072, Santragacchi: 03326295561. "Presence of passengers of eight trains at a time resulted in heavy rush at the foot overbridge," a South Eastern Railway release said. Banerjee alleged the announcement regarding change of platforms for arriving trains was announced at the last minutes. Stampede at Garibnath Temple in Bihar's Muzaffarpur, 15 Devotees Injured.

"The incident happened in the premises of Indian Railways. They will be able to say why they made public announcements of so many trains simultaneously," the chief minister said. She further alleged there was lack of coordination on the part of railway, compromising the security of innocent people. "Security of people should not be compromised, and railway should take proper care of the people. Railway is the lifeline of the country, it should not be derailed," she said.

Watch Video: Stampede on Footbridge at Santragachi Station in Howrah

Further details were awaited. On September 29, 2017, a stampede at Elphinstone Road FOB in Mumbai claimed lives of 23 commuters.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 23, 2018 08:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).