Vizianagaram: 14 army aspirants suffered bruises and suffocation in a stampede that took place during the second day of the Army Recruitment Rally near the police ground in Vizianagaram on Sunday morning. Of them, three aspirants were severely injured and were shifted to King George Hospital in Visakhapatnam. No causalities were reported. It may be mentioned that four aspirants were injured on the first day of the recruitment rally on Saturday morning.
Sources said thousands of youngsters from Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam and Krishna districts, and Yanam, Puducherry, reached Vizianagaram on Saturday night to take the test for the posts of soldier technical, nursing assistants and veterinary assistants. The aspirants waited in front of the police ground as per the instructions from the Army officers. Noticing that the aspirants were gathering in large numbers, the authorities opened the gates to allow them inside the stadium. As a result, a large number of people rushed inside the venue, resulting in a stampede at 4 am.
K. Muralimanohar and K. Sankara Rao of Srikakulam district were suffocated and rushed to KG Hospital in Vizag while T. Appala Naidu was admitted at a private hospital in Vizag with a spinal injury. The aspirants alleged that the authorities had failed to provide basic amenities and that there was lack of coordination between the police and Army personnel. Tafseer Iqbal, sub-inspector of police, Vizianagaram, said that timings for the test had been extended and candidates would be issued tokens from Monday to avoid a repeat of Thursday’s chaos.
