They alleged that there was total anarchy in the hospital as no senior doctor was available in Bihar’s most premier hospital just after the tragedy. The callous attitude of the hospital authorities can be measured from the fact that two persons, who were still alive, were sent to mortuary, where actually post mortem is done.

There was hardly any ambulance available and people were seen taking the victims to the hospital on makeshift stretchers, rickshaw or any other private vehilces. The hospital was not at all prepared for any emergency like situation though it was just 200 metres or so away from the accident site.

Relatives, friends and volunteers took the victims to the far off private hospitals such as Magadh Hospital, Rajeshwar Hospital and nearby Arvind Hospital as they lost all hopes in PMCH.

Furious over the response of the PMCH the people started indulging in arson and stone pelting. They raised slogans against chief minister Nitish Kumar and top police and administrative officers were chased away. The police then chased the mob by resorting to lathicharge. The clashes continued till late in the night.

The biggest tragedy is that unlike other mishaps, for example, the July 2000 Alliance Air crash near Patna Airport, in which 57 people lost their lives, there was no element of surprise. There is every possibility of any eventuality taking place in such a huge congregation. The authorities should have been prepared as lakhs of people had assembled literally on the back of the PMCH. Yet the situation, if the people are to be believe, was even worse than normal days.

The irony is that when the people were protesting against the absence of the doctors and other facilities chief minister Nitish Kumar was appealing to the people to let the doctors treat the injured victims.