A 26-year-old nursing staff member from Hooghly died in the Chorbagān puja pandal incident in Kolkata, according to a report by Sanmarg. The deceased was identified as Sriparna Poddar, a resident of Ward 18 under Baidyabati Municipality in Hooghly district.
Poddar worked as nursing staff at Tata Medical College in Kolkata. According to a neighbour cited in the report, she had left home in the morning before the family received information about the incident.
The report said Poddar’s death occurred during the incident at a puja pandal in Chorbagān. It did not provide details on the sequence of events, the crowd size, the arrangements at the venue or the circumstances in which she sustained fatal injuries.
The incident has also affected other residents of Hooghly. Sanmarg reported that several other people from the district were injured, but it did not give a confirmed number or details about their medical condition.
After receiving information about Poddar’s death, Champdani MLA Dilip Singh visited her family home and assured them of support, according to the report. The account did not specify whether the city administration, police or organisers had issued a separate statement on the incident.
The death brings attention to the safety risks associated with large public gatherings at temporary festival structures. Puja pandals draw substantial crowds in Kolkata during the festive season, making access control, entry and exit routes, emergency response and coordination between organisers and public authorities important operational concerns. The supplied report, however, does not establish whether any specific crowd-management or safety measure failed in this case.
Further details on the total number of casualties, the condition of those reported injured, the official cause of the incident and any administrative action were not available in the source report. Authorities and organisers’ statements will be needed to establish the full circumstances of the Chorbagān incident.
