Autopsies conducted late into the night, kin given ex gratia in cash

Railway authorities paid ex-gratia relief of ₹2.5 lakh in cash to three seriously injured victims and ₹1 lakh each to another 12 wounded passengers.

The Indian railways got autopsies conducted on the bodies of Saturday’s stampede victims at three city hospitals through the night, gave ex-gratia relief of ₹10 lakh in cash to the kin of each deceased at the mortuaries, arranged ambulances and dispatched the bodies along with their relatives accompanied by a security person to their respective hometowns within hours, railway and police officials said on Sunday.

Relative of a victim being handed over ex-gratia relief in cash and getting other formalities done after the stampede. (HT Photo)

Apart from ₹10 lakh paid to each bereaved family, railway authorities paid ex-gratia relief of ₹2.5 lakh in cash to three seriously injured victims and ₹1 lakh each to another 12 wounded passengers, who received medical attention at city hospitals.

“All the compensation has been given to the near relatives (of the dead and injured people) in cash by Northern Railways. It was distributed from morning to 8pm,” Dilip Kumar, executive director (information & publicity), Railway Board, said.

According to a ministry of railways’ press release of September 22, 2023, available on the Press Information Bureau’s (PIB’s) website, central government guidelines stipulate that “a maximum amount of up to ₹50,000 to be paid in cash as an immediate relief for taking care of initial expenses” to the victims’ families while the remaining amount would be paid by account payee cheque, RTGS, NEFT, or any other online payment mode. Notwithstanding this, the release said, the entire amount may be disbursed through the online mode if deemed necessary.

In Saturday’s incident, however, the entire compensation was paid immediately to the families in cash, a move described as unusual by veteran officials.

A retired legal officer, who was part of the claims commission formed to release compensation to the victims of the 2020 Delhi riots, said on condition of anonymity that in normal course, the ex-gratia amount is paid only after going through the entire protocol, which includes verification of the victims and of their family members, deaths and injuries, and the amount is released through cheques or transferred to bank accounts. The entire procedure takes at least two to three months, he said.

“Although there is nothing illegal in the immediate release of the ex-gratia amount in cash, yet it was unusual. I had not heard of it before. Considering the emotional setback to the dear ones of the deceased, immediate disbursal of compensation is a welcome step, which, I believe, the railway authorities took to quell the panic. The cash must have been taken from the contingency funds of the railway department. There may be issues during the audit since a huge amount was involved,” said the retired legal officer.

HT spoke to the families of some of the dead and injured passengers who received the ex-gratia amount within hours of the tragedy. The bereaved families said a three-member Indian Railways team met them at the mortuaries around 4.30am, asked them to identify and claim the bodies of their loved ones after the autopsy, conducted their on-the-spot personal verification by checking and keeping copies of identification documents, handed over the ₹10 lakh ex-gratia amount in cash, and asked them to sign acknowledgement papers of having received the money and the body.

Thereafter, railway officials arranged ambulances and deployed security personnel to accompany the bodies and family members. Security personnel were deployed to ensure the families were not robbed of the money during their travel to their hometowns, officials said.

Prabhu Sah, who lost his 19-year-old daughter Baby Kumari, said he was taking her body back to their hometown Motihari in Bihar in an ambulance along with an RPF official. Last year, Kumari had cleared her Class 12 exams and came to Delhi to look for a job.

“It all started around 4.30am. Families of the deceased were called. A railway official came to me and started asking me for details. I told him everything and showed him my daughter’s and my documents. He then told me the formalities at the mortuary were done and I can collect the body. They handed me the body and a railway official gave me ₹10 lakh in cash. They then rushed me towards an ambulance and sent a cop along. I was not allowed to talk to the media around and was told to take the body home.”

Among the 18 dead people was 12-year-old Neeraj Kumar from Bihar’s Vaishali who was going for Maha Kumbh with his uncle, Amarjeet Paswan, and aunt Rekha Devi, who were also injured in the stampede. Before Paswan and his wife could compose themselves after the incident, the family said they were handed cash relief.

“Railway officials first gave me and my wife ₹2 lakh. They then made me call my brother (Neeraj’s father) and get documents online. They then handed me more cash and said it was ₹10 lakh. I have never seen so much cash. My nephew was like my son… I wish I had not taken him for the Maha Kumbh trip. He would have survived,” said Paswan, a labourer.

Roshan Jha, nephew of Mamta Jha, 45, who died in the stampede, said his uncle, Vipin Jha, 47, received ₹10 lakh in cash before leaving the hospital. “They told my maternal uncle the money was to compensate the loss. They made him sign some papers,” Jha said.