INTEGRATED MAINS AND PRELIMS MENTORSHIP (IMPM) 2025 Daily KEY
| Exclusive for Subscribers Daily: Stampede for the UPSC Exam? Why are topics like India's Growth Statistics and Wildfires important for both preliminary and main exams? Discover more insights in the UPSC Exam Notes for January 10, 2025 |
🚨 UPSC EXAM NOTES presents the January edition of our comprehensive monthly guide. Access it to enhance your preparation. We value your input - share your thoughts and recommendations in the comments section or via email at Support@upscexamnotes.com 🚨
Critical Topics and Their Significance for the UPSC CSE Examination on January 10, 2025
Daily Insights and Initiatives for UPSC Exam Notes: Comprehensive explanations and high-quality material provided regularly for students
For Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance
For Mains Examination: GS II - Governance
Context:
Six people were killed in a stampede in Tirupati on Wednesday (January 8) while waiting to collect tokens for the darshan of Lord Venkateswara. Thousands had gathered to collect the tokens, due to the auspicious Vaikunta Ekadasi festival.
Read about:
What is a stampede?
Stampedes in India
Key takeaways:
A stampede refers to the rapid and often chaotic movement of a crowd, frequently resulting in injuries or fatalities. Wenguo Weng and colleagues describe it as an "impulsive mass movement" with such consequences. Similarly, Illiyas and others define it as the "disruption of orderly crowd movement" that can lead to harm, often triggered by perceived danger, limited physical space, or a strong desire to attain something desirable.
Causes of Fatalities in Stampedes
Fatalities in stampedes are predominantly due to traumatic asphyxia, which occurs when external pressure on the chest or upper abdomen restricts or halts breathing. Even relatively moderate crowd pressures—such as six to seven individuals pushing in a single direction—can exert sufficient force to cause injuries or death. Other contributing factors include heart attacks (myocardial infarction), direct crushing of internal organs, head injuries, and neck compression.
Psychological Triggers of Stampedes
- Stampedes typically occur during large gatherings, whether unplanned events, such as overcrowding in a metro station, or organized events, like the tragic Hathras satsang stampede of July 2024, which claimed over 100 lives.
- Panic is often the primary factor that initiates or exacerbates a stampede. Psychologist Alexander Mintz, in his influential study on group behavior, explained that in panic-inducing situations, cooperation is essential for safety and individual reward, provided everyone collaborates.
- However, when cooperation breaks down—such as when individuals block exits by pushing—pushing becomes a self-preservation strategy. Although advantageous at the individual level, this behavior can lead to catastrophic outcomes for the group.
- In some cases, stampedes are fueled by what sociologist Neil J. Smelser refers to as a "craze." This phenomenon involves collective action driven by a belief in achieving a positive outcome, which can be either rational or irrational. In large groups, such beliefs often spread rapidly, prompting actions that may conflict with individual self-interest and safety
1. Poor crowd control mechanisms
2. Overcrowding beyond capacity
3. Lack of adequate emergency response systems
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2, and 3