Chennai: Lack of coordination between Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Tamil Nadu government, lapses in inter-departmental communication between various state departments, coupled with inadequate arrangements, are among factors that likely played a role in the deaths of five spectators during an air show at Marina Beach here Sunday.
State Health Minister M. Subramaniam told reporters Monday that the deaths were caused by dehydration, while doctors in the know confirmed to ThePrint that all five were declared dead on arrival.
Going by estimates, compared to 2003 when such an air show was last organised in Chennai and witnessed by nearly 10 lakh people, the event on 6 October to mark IAF’s 92nd anniversary drew a crowd of over 15 lakh. Though organised by the IAF, logistics and other arrangements for the air show were overseen by the state. Government sources said two meetings were held between state and IAF officials to discuss the arrangements.
While sources blamed lack of coordination for the deaths, health minister M. Subramaniam maintained that the “state government arranged everything that was asked by the IAF”.
He went on to add, “The IAF acknowledged that all arrangements were made as per their requirement.”
On claims that drinking water and first aid arrangements at the event were inadequate, the minister denied the first claim without going into any details, while adding that two teams of medical professionals with enough doctors and nurses were deployed at the event, besides personnel from the Air Force Medical Corps (AFMC). As many as 40 ambulances were stationed at Marina Beach along with teams of paramedics, he added.
As many as 100 beds and 65 doctors were also kept on standby at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (Madras Medical College), which is about 10 minutes from Marina Beach, Subramaniam told reporters.
According to the health department, of the 105 people admitted to five state-run hospitals in Chennai after the air show, only four are still under treatment while the others were discharged within hours of admission.
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‘Went to get his bike, never returned’
However, contrary to claims of the DMK-led government, spectators ThePrint spoke to lamented what they said was a complete failure on the part of organisers to arrange drinking water. Many said they had to knock on the doors of strangers on their way to a nearby bus stop or metro station.
“Since our vehicles were not allowed close to the location, we had to park it several kilometres away from the place. Though there were shops several metres away from the location, the shops also ran out of water bottles and we had to knock on the doors of the houses in the locality to quench our thirst,” said M. Anuradha, a resident of Purasawalkam.
Narrating her ordeal, Sivaranjani, the wife of 34-year-old Karthikeyan who is believed to have died of a heatstroke, said she waited for him near the bus stand. “He left me near the bus stand to get his bike and never returned.”
Sivaranjani recalled that she was clueless about her husband’s condition for nearly two hours and could not get in touch with him due to restricted network connectivity in the area at the time. “The moment I got a signal at around 3 pm, I immediately called my husband but nobody picked up for a long time. Finally somebody picked up, and told me he (Karthikeyan) had fainted near his bike about 500 metres from where I was standing.”
She also said that she pleaded with bystanders to give her husband first aid but they were “keen” to send her off to a hospital in an ambulance.
Karthikeyan was among the five who died, allegedly of heat stroke, during or immediately after the event. The other deceased have been identified as John (56), Mani (55), Srinivasan (48) and Dinesh Kumar Vannam (40). On Monday, CM Stalin announced a solatium of Rs 5 lakh each for the families of the deceased.
Eyewitnesses confirmed to ThePrint that besides lack of proper arrangements and the excess heat, traffic snarls added to the chaos.
Egmore resident Kamali Dayalan said, “When the (air) show started, there was enough police protection and all was well. However, once the event ended, there was complete chaos as vehicles were allowed on the Wallajah Road near the beach. All roads were flooded with pedestrians and commuters; it took me an hour to cover a distance of 300 metres by foot.”
Questioning claims of the Greater Chennai Corporation and Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board—that the venue had at least 60 public toilets and 50,000 litres of drinking water—Dayalan said spectators have reason to be ‘angry’ with the authorities.
“Despite knowing that it would be humid and the footfall could Exceed 15 lakh, they failed to arrange enough water for the people,” she remarked.
Oppn, ally gun for DMK
Loss of lives and discomfort caused to spectators left the ruling DMK wide open to criticism not just from its arch rival, but also from one of its allies.
AIADMK referred to the last time such an air show was organised in Chennai in 2003, when the late J. Jayalalithaa was chief minister, saying the event was managed much better then. Edappadi K. Palaniswami, the Leader of the Opposition, blamed CM M.K. Stalin for the mismanagement.
DMK ally VCK, meanwhile, demanded a high-level inquiry to assess what went wrong and fix accountability. “Action has to be taken against those responsible for the fiasco,” VCK leader Thol. Thirumavalavan said.
K.S. Radhakrishnan, a political activist who witnessed the 2003 event, recalled, “About 10 lakh people attended the event then, but there was enough police in place. Also, they had arranged for water and distributed it through water packets. Buttermilk was distributed on the stretches of the beach road, and vehicles prohibited until the crowds were dispersed.”
“Back in 2003, 10 lakh people assembled just by knowing about the event through newspapers. However, now in the age of social media, more people tend to gather. Even in those days, AIADMK distributed handheld fans to beat the heat, but it was not the case during Sunday’s event,” he added.
DMK Lok Sabha MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi’s post on X suggesting that “unmanageable gatherings should also be avoided” too invited criticism from various quarters. Director Lenin Bharathi reacted by saying the government should avoid such events if it can’t manage such large crowds.
Health Minister Subramaniam, however, maintained that spectators were warned in advance to carry umbrellas, water bottles and sunglasses.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)