Stampedes: A Preventable Tragedy – Dr Rao Papineni

I’m haunted by the specter of stampedes that claim innocent lives. The sheer predictability of these disasters is appalling. With India’s growing population, basic crowd management is no longer sufficient. It’s imperative that we harness scientific methods, including AI, ML, real-time image analysis, and mobile phone SOS alerts and Alarms, to restore sanity to crowded public spaces.

Public education is CRUCIAL. Maintaining a safe distance of at least one foot (ONE FOOT RULE) while queuing and avoiding physical contact with others can significantly reduce the risk of stampedes. It doesn’t take a prophet to foresee the alarming rise in stampede and traffic disasters unless we take decisive action.

Its time the government establish a dedicated task force, insulated from bureaucratic red tape, to tackle this issue on a war footing. We cannot afford to have politicians and administrators offering condolences and regrets on a routine basis. Life is precious, and it’s time to invest thought, time, and resources into your preventing these tragedies.