Yearender 2024: India has faced an exceptionally challenging year in 2024 in terms of devastating accidents, gas tanker blasts, natural disasters, and several industrial explosions, which have collectively resulted in significant loss of life and widespread damage across the nation. From horrific road accidents and deadly industrial mishaps to landslides, the incidents have cast a shadow over the country’s preparedness for ensuring safety.
These tragedies have affected families, communities, and entire regions, drawing attention to the deep-rooted issues in safety protocols and crisis management. These incidents show that there is an urgent need for stronger safety measures, faster responses, and better systems to prevent such disasters in future.
As the year draws to a close, just take a look on the significant incidents that have shaken India in 2024, with a sombre understanding of the challenges faced and the resilience shown by its people.
Here’s list of tragic accidents that claimed many lives
1. Kerala landslide
On July 30, Kerala was hit with a landslide, the deadliest one in the state, killing more than 300 people and destroying scores of houses and other buildings. Major landslides hit the Mundakkai and Chooralmala regions of Wayanad almost decimating both areas. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan later announced a compensation of Rs 6 lakh for the next of kin of those who died in the massive landslides.
2. Jaipur gas tanker crash
An LPG tanker collided with a truck on December 20, sparking a massive fireball that turned a stretch of the Jaipur-Ajmer highway into an inferno in which 12 people were killed and 37 vehicles engulfed in flames.
The crash occurred around 5:30 am, when it was dark, in front of a school in the Bhankrota area. The gas leak spread the fire in a flash, leaving no scope for those in nearby vehicles to come out.
3. Hathras stampede
As many as 121 devotees suffocated to their deaths and bodies piled atop each other in the July 2 stampede among the biggest such tragedies that took place at a ‘satsang’ of spiritual guru Narayan Sakar Hari “Bhole Baba” alias Surajpal in the Hathras district’s Fulari/ Phulrai village.
In October, police filed a 3,200-page charge sheet in the district court. They arrested around a dozen organisers of the event. Among those held was the main organiser Devprakash Madhukar. Surajpal was not mentioned as an accused in the case.
On July 3, the Uttar Pradesh government formed a three-member judicial commission headed by a retired high court judge to probe the Hathras tragedy and to look into the possibility of a conspiracy behind the stampede.
4. Rajkot Gaming Zone fire
As many as 27 persons including children were brutally charred to death when a massive fire broke out at TRP Game Zone on May 25 this year. The main accused, who worked at the TRP game zone, was arrested by Banaskantha Local Crime Branch and Rajkot Police.
Police have also invoked sections 465, 466, 471, 474, 120 (b), 201, 114 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) pertaining to forgery, destroying evidence, criminal conspiracy and abettor present when offence is committed against the arrested RMC employees.
They have been chargesheeted in offences that attract a jail term of a maximum of 10 years. According to police, the game zone was being operated without a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the RMC’s fire department.
5. Hathras bus accident
At least 17 people, including women and children, travelling in a van were killed on September 6 after a roadways bus hit the vehicle from behind on National Highway 93 in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh.
The accident occurred near Kanwarpur village, about 10 kilometres from the district headquarters. The passengers were on their way to Agra from Hathras.
Some of the deceased have been identified as Irshad (25), Munne Khan (55), Muskan (16), Talli (28), Tabassum (28), Najma (25), Bhola (25), Khushbu (25), Jameel (50), Chote (25), Ayan (two), Sufiyan (one), Alfaz (six), Shoaib (five) and Ishrat (50). Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for those injured.
6. Jhansi hospital fire
On November 15, a fire had occurred at the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi which took the lives of 17 infants. The tragedy occurred when a fire, suspected to have been caused by a short circuit in an oxygen concentrator, spread rapidly in the highly oxygenated environment of the NICU, leading to the deaths of newborns.
Thirty-nine newborns were rescued from a devastating fire in the medical college hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit on the night of Nov 15.
The Uttar Pradesh government on November 16 formed a high-level committee to probe the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College fire tragedy in which 17 infants have passed away in Jhansi.
7. Mumbai ferry capsize
At least 15 people have died after a ferry capsized off the coast of Mumbai on December 18. According to officials, the ferry, carrying 85 passengers, including five crew members, was en route to Elephanta Island when the incident occurred near Uran, Karanja.
8. West Bengal Train Collision
11 people lost their lives, and at least 60 were injured on June 17 when a freight train rear-ended the Kanchanjunga Express near Rangapani railway station in Darjeeling district, West Bengal, due to over-speeding and a faulty signal.
A goods train collided with the passenger train Agartala-Kanchanjunga Express near Rangapani railway station where close to 41 people were injured.
The collision also ignited political controversy, as the signalling system of the rails were discussed to be faulty, due to which the freight train rammed into the Kanchanjunga Express. The drivers of both the trains did not survive the crash.
Some rail authorities claimed that the loco pilot was driving at a higher speed, which led to immense backlash from railway unions, who said that the ministry was passing on the blame on the driver before an inquiry.
9. Bareilly flyover accident
A tragic road accident claimed the lives of three men in Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly district after their car, guided by ‘Google Maps’, plunged off an under-construction flyover into the Ramganga River. The incident occurred on November 23 as the victims were en route to attend a wedding.
The victims were travelling from Gurugram to Bareilly. Relying on GPS navigation, they followed Google Maps’ directions, which led them onto an unfinished bridge. Unaware of the incomplete structure, the car continued onto the flyover and fell 50 feet into the shallow river below. Locals discovered the vehicle the next morning and alerted the police. All three passengers were found dead at the scene.
10. Pune helicopter crash
A tragic helicopter crash near Pune city on October 2 morning claimed the lives of three experienced aviation professionals, including two former Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots and a retired Navy engineer. The incident involved an Agusta 109 helicopter owned by Heritage Aviation, a private Delhi-based aviation company.
The victims were identified as pilot Paramjeet Singh (62) and co-pilot GK Pillai (57), both ex-IAF personnel, and aircraft maintenance engineer Pritam Kumar Bhardwaj (53), a former Indian Navy officer. According to authorities, the helicopter caught fire after crashing in hilly terrain near Bavdhan, approximately 25 km from Pune.
11. Mumbai Hoarding Collapse
On May 13, an illegal hoarding collapsed during a storm in the Ghatkopar suburb of Mumbai, killing 17 people and injuring 74 others. The hoarding, which was erected without proper permits, fell into a gas station, causing an explosion. The incident took place during a heavy rainstorm, which contributed to the collapse. The victims, many of whom were workers at the gas station, were caught under the debris.
12. Assam Bus-Truck Crash
A tragic bus accident occurred in Assam’s Golaghat district on January 3, when a bus carrying 45 passengers collided with a truck, resulting in 12 deaths and injuring 30 others. The collision happened in the Balijan area near Dergaon. Following the incident, local authorities and residents rushed to the site and engaged in rescue operations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also condoled the accident.
