Why New Delhi railway station entrance from Ajmeri Gate is always packed

Easier access, more parking, direct metro link, disproportionate load of East India-bound trains make this part of station especially vulnerable to crowd surges

The Ajmeri Gate Terminal of the New Delhi Railway Station is notorious for its near-constant rush, and has even seen stampedes in the recent past, owing to its direct connectivity to the Delhi Metro and a more expansive parking area.

Massive crowds of people boarding and deboarding trains at New Delhi Railway Station on Sunday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

At least 18 deaths and 15 injuries were reported, showcasing no lessons have been learnt from past incidents, locals and officials said.

On Saturday night, a foot overbridge (FOB) connecting platforms 14 and 15 became the epicentre of a deadly stampede that killed 18 people. Vendors, frequent passengers, and officials said platforms 12 through 16 — on the Ajmeri Gate side — have long been the busiest and have even witnessed stampedes before.

In 2012, two people died in a stampede on Platform 12. A similar incident in 2010 exposed the systemic flaws that make Ajmeri Gate more crowded than Paharganj, which serves platforms 1 to 8.

A spot check by HT on Sunday revealed multiple bottlenecks on the platforms on the Ajmeri Gate side that impede smooth passenger movement, worsening congestion at one of the country’s busiest railway stations.

At least two escalators connecting the FOBs to platforms 14 and 15 were out of service, with signs reading, “Maintenance in progress: For your own safety, please don’t use this escalator.” Additionally, cargo lying at the far end of the already packed platform further restricted space.

Navigating the station’s 16 platforms requires passengers to rely on an interconnected network of FOBs, which are also linked to the Delhi Metro. Several factors—including easier access, more parking, direct metro connectivity, and a disproportionate load of East India-bound trains—make this part of the station especially vulnerable to crowd surges.

A third FOB near Mithai Pul remained unused, forcing people to rely on two other overburdened bridges, leading to bottlenecks and long queues.

Triveni Prasad, a vendor on platform number 14 said that the site is always congested with large number trains bound for Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa and other parts of east India coming on this end of the station.

“During Chhath festival, these platforms were chaotic, but this time, the crowd was at least twice as big,” he said.

Passengers noted that high-traffic trains like the Swatantrata Senani Express, Kashi Vishwanath Express, Dibrugarh Rajdhani, Sampark Kranti, Poorvottar Sampark Kranti, Bhubaneshwar Tejas Rajdhani, and Magadh Express all operate from this side of the station.

Ajmeri Gate’s large parking space and direct connectivity to the Yellow and Airport metro lines further contribute to the crowding.

Bikrant Kumar, 32, who was heading to Prayagraj from Platform 16, said reaching the station was easy via the metro. “I took the metro because it’s cheaper and faster. I exited the station and entered the railway terminal within minutes. It saved time, and I directly reached my train,” he said. However, he added that better crowd management and security checks were needed. “There was no checking. I just placed my luggage through the scanner, and I was inside.”