A Year On, Some Lessons Learnt From NDLS Tragedy, But Cannot Bring Back Loved Ones

New Delhi: A year after the New Delhi Railway Station crowd crush claimed the lives of 18 people, the families of the victims remain trapped in a cycle of grief and hardship. For many, the tragedy dismantled their futures: a carpenter is abandoning the city to move to Bihar, children have been forced into premature adulthood, balancing household chores with school, while others have lost their sole breadwinner.Education has been a major casualty, with aspiring medical and engineering students seeing their preparations derailed by trauma and financial loss. While some families used compensation to fulfil the final wishes of the deceased, others struggled to afford basic tuition. From grandmothers stepping in as primary caregivers to widows pleading for employment, the survivors are no longer just mourning — they are fighting a quiet battle for survival.The family of Pinki Devi, 41, one of the victims, has been unable to recover from the tragedy. Her relative Sarita Devi, who was injured in the crowd crush, said she sti-ll experiences shoulder pain, which worsens during the winter. Pinki's young daughter Kritika, she said, has suffered deeply. After attend-ing school, she returns home to manage household cho-res. "She has grown up too fast," Sarita said.The family lives in Sangam Vihar in south Delhi. Their most cherished memory is a final social media reel made together while travelling to New Delhi Railway Station. In the video, Pinki appears happy and excited, eagerly looking forward to her journey to the Mahakumbh. Now, Pinki's husband Upender, who works as a carpenter, plans to leave the city and move with his children, Kritika and her brother Prince, to their native place in Bihar.Manoj Shah, a labourer who works at the Tikri border, is still struggling to come to terms with the loss he suffered. His parents, Vijay and Krishna Shah, aged 45 and 40, as well as his 11-year-old niece Suruchi were killed in the tragic incident. His parents, recalled Manoj, had one wish — to see their daughter Kajal get married in a grand and joyful ceremony."After their death, whatever compensation we received, we decided to use it to fulfil that wish. Last Nov, we organised my sister's wedding in Bihar using th-at money. This was the on-ly thing we felt we could do for them," he said.Mamta Jha, a 40-year-old homemaker, was returning to Delhi from her native place in Madhubani, Bihar, when the incident crushed the family. Her husband Bipin, who lives in Kirari, said, "My relatives had asked her to stay back for a few more days, but she returned for the sake of the children and me. Our entire family is still living in deep depression."The tragedy has severe-ly affected the children's education. Jha's elder daugh-ter was preparing for medical entrance examinations, but her studies were disrupted for nearly five-six months. Similar was the case with their other daughter too. The girls' younger brother, meanwhile, constantly asks for his mother.The children's 70-year-old grandmother has now taken over the responsibility of caring and cooking for them to ensure they continue their studies and fulfil the drea-ms Mamta had for them. "I wish no other family has to suffer what we are going through," Bipin said.In Nangloi's Chanchal Park area, the death of Ma-noj Kushwaha, 47, has left his loved ones struggling to make ends meet. Manoj, who worked as a welder, was the family's sole breadwinner. "I want govt to provide a job to my elder son," his wi-fe Manju told TOI. "For no-w, my brother is helping us run the household."Recalling the horrific incident, she said her husband was near the staircase where the crowd crush broke out, while she was standing close to the lift and narrowly escaped. "If I had been with him, I might not have survived."Manoj had big aspirations for their children, but financial hardship has impacted their education now. "He wanted one son to pursue a PhD and the other to become an engineer. All those dreams were shattered in a moment. We don't have money for tuition. Both the children are studying in govt institutions," Manju said.Indian Railways had pa-id Rs 2 crore as ex gratia to the victims and their fam-ily members -- Rs 10 lakh to the next of kin of each deceased, Rs 2.5 lakh each to the grievously injured, and Rs 1 lakh each to those with minor injuries.While the then commissioner Sanjay Arora had not registered an FIR, the incident had been probed through inquest proceedings.The tragedy led to a range of measures being taken up to control crowds, particularly during festivals. According to railway officials, a permanent holding area was set up outside NDLS, with similar plans for other major stations. Medical booths with on-demand doctors, increased road barricading, queue managers and additional booking counters we-re introduced to improve crowd management."For festivals and special occasions, mini control rooms, establishing war rooms at divisional offices and Northern Railway headquarters, suspended platform tickets, extra RPF person-nel, Rail Sevaks, volunteers, help desks, inquiry counte-rs and additional phone li-nes have been deployed. The number of special trains has also been increased to manage passenger surges," an official said.