In case you missed it, a tragic accident happened where a woman at the New Delhi railway station died of electrocution. The woman in question was Sakshi Ahuja who was 35 years old. She was on her way to Chandigarh via the shiny new Vande Bharat Express along with her family. While entering the station, she slipped on a puddle and in order to save herself from falling, grabbed the nearest support. What she grabbed was an open wire which sent 440 volts of electricity through her body and killed her.
Father Questions Lack Of Facilities At Delhi Station
The incident took place on the 25th of June, Sunday. While the tragedy was shocking, what is more, striking is that there were no ambulances or first-aid kits present at the station. According to an article recently published by NDTV, it took 40 minutes for Ahuja’s family to get out of the station.
This was because of poor traffic management that is often seen near the entrances of stations. Because other vehicles were bottlenecking the entrance, it took about an hour for the family to get out and reach the nearest hospital which was around 2.5 kilometres away.
Sakshi’s father, who was there when the tragedy happened, has since raised several important questions about the emergency preparedness of the Delhi Station officials. He questioned, first and foremost, why were there exposed wires at all. They are especially dangerous during the monsoon season.
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We Have Vande Bharat, But Infrastructure Of Stations Is Lacking
In the article, NDTV reported him raising questions like why basic facilities like ambulances are absent at the Delhi railway station. The article mentions that the station witnesses a footfall of nearly 5 lakh people. It is inevitable that emergency situations will arise when dealing with such a large number.
The lack of an ambulance seems all the more irresponsible given the high number of people. The father said that they did not want any monetary compensation. He just wanted the people responsible to be punished. He even said that he is prepared for a legal battle.
On the one hand, we have shiny new state-of-the-art trains like Vande Bharat. But the stations from which these trains are deployed lack basic necessities and emergency preparedness.
Also Read: Even After The Death Of A Teacher At New Delhi Railway Station, Loose Wires Are Seen Hanging
During monsoons, it is all the more integral to be careful of open wires.
Cover Image Credits: Wikimedia Commons