The much anticipated Happy Street event organised by the Thanjavur Municipality took a disheartening plunge into chaos. Unlike the previous time , the gathering swelled to an alarming size, with over a thousand youngsters converging at a designated location, giving rise to severe overcrowding issues.
The overcrowded environment led to unfortunate incidents, as some young attendees collapsed amidst the sea of people. Disturbingly, injuries were sustained by a number of attendees. In addition to the physical toll, discomfort and unease also gripped many women present at the event.
Attendees allege that there were no proper drinking water facilities or any other basic facilities at the event which led to dehydration and fainting among several youth. Molestation attempts were also reported at the venue.
This has happened again today in Thanjavur… request .@CMOTamilnadu to stop this madness before it's too late. pic.twitter.com/kKkIo7IELg
— Vishwatma 🇮🇳 (@HLKodo) October 15, 2023
The distressing outcome underscores a dire lack of adequate pre-event preparations, exacerbating the impact on the participants and endangering their well-being. This alarming pattern of Happy Streets turning into scenes of distressing tragedies is deeply concerning. It is evident that the community’s enjoyment and safety are compromised due to the inadequacy of the arrangements.
A report by News18 indicates that the barricades were damaged by unknown individuals. It has been noted that several of the attendees left their footwear and other plastic items at the venue and the whole place looked like a garbage mound.
This is not an isolated incident, as a similar scenario unfolded recently during a Happy Street event in Madurai.
In September 2023, the event in Madurai took a disastrous turn with women and young girls molested, children going missing, several fainting due to the overcrowded venue. The authorities were aware of the unfolding of events, yet they continued but after a point where a stampede situation arose, they dispersed the crowd. Several ladies were also injured during the event. It is noteworthy that DMK Minister PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan and Kollywood actor Soori were part of the event.
Thread 🧵with evidences on #Madurai #Wowstreet #horrors that was 100x times more traumatic and horrifying for several kids and women. I am sure there will be no tweets of empathy from the same Twitter media lobby that was outraged during #arrahman #MarakummaNenjam concert. (1/N)
— Vadakkan (@Vadakkanunga) September 24, 2023
The recurrence of such distressing incidents underscores the pressing need for swift and decisive action. It is imperative for the government to take immediate steps to address this growing concern before it escalates further and becomes an irreversible public health crisis.
Despite several instances in the recent past, be it the Marakkuma Nenjam event by AR Rahman which ended in a disaster or the Happy Streets event in Madurai, critics argue that the state government has not learnt any lessons from previous fiascos.
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