UP to have SOPs for gatherings to prevent Hathras-like tragedies: Min

A day after a stampede in Hathras claimed 121 lives, Uttar Pradesh minister Asim Arun on Wednesday said the state government has started work on SOPs for granting permission for large gatherings to prevent such incidents in future. He said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has instructed officials to prepare the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and permission for events would be granted only if the "basic, minimum" conditions for amenities are met. Arun, the minister of state for social welfare, is part of a three-minister committee formed by Adityanath for supervising the relief measures in the aftermath of the stampede. Explaining how the tragedy unfolded, he said, "It appears sevadars (volunteers) who were managing things inside did something wrong in terms of crowd management and that is another lesson learnt." "We should not leave it to sevadars or volunteers. They do a great job, of course, but the police and magistrates are more experienced," he said. So, the chief ministe