Dehradun, Feb. 18 -- Things go wrong when there are flaws in established protocols, or if events occur that break through the guard-rails. A high-level inquiry has been ordered into the stampede that took place at New Delhi Railway Station on Saturday night, claiming 18 lives, mostly women and children. The large crowd at the station at the site of the incident is being attributed to Mahakumbh pilgrims, as well as a last-minute announcement about change in the platforms for arrival of trains. The actual facts will become known, hopefully, after the inquiry is concluded. The nation will learn whether the tragedy occurred due to human failure or an unprecedented sequence of events.
It is an undoubted fact that the Railways are an institution...