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Globe and Mail
30-01-2025
- Globe and Mail
Devotees say they pleaded to open more routes moments before deadly stampede at India festival
Moments before a deadly stampede at the world's biggest religious gathering in India, Hindu devotees queuing to take a spiritual bath in a river said they pleaded with police to open barricaded routes to thin out a surging crowd. Police did not respond, they said, and soon people squeezed in the massive crowd began fainting, creating panic at the Maha Kumbh Mela Hindu festival in the northern city of Prayagraj. 'People were asking police to open the barricades to other routes as it was suffocating to stand there in that crowd for almost an hour. We couldn't breathe,' Jagwanti Devi, who was in the crowd with her family of six, said on Thursday. 'Then suddenly my mother fainted, and some other elderly people also fainted, which created a commotion. We fell down and many people stepped over us,' said Devi, wailing next to the bodies of her mother and sister-in-law at a city mortuary. At least 30 people died in the stampede that broke just after midnight on Wednesday, according to official data, but authorities speaking on condition of anonymity at the mortuary said the death toll was nearly double at more than 50. A Reuters witness counted at least 39 bodies inside the morgue late Wednesday afternoon, by when some bodies had been handed over to relatives, but police said the excess bodies were unrelated deaths. Vaibhav Krishna, a deputy inspector general at the festival, and two other officers, said the crowd of 80 million was four times larger than the expected size and all the devotees wanted to go to the main bathing area at the confluence of three rivers rather than spreading out. The first alert on police systems of a crowd surge came an hour before midnight on Tuesday and a second alert 45 minutes after midnight, by which time police had sent additional forces to the area, Krishna said. The first casualty report came half an hour later. Police said the path leading to the main bathing area is only 50 metres (150 feet) wide and barricaded on either side to avoid people spilling over to other paths used by Hindu ascetics and for quick movement of police vehicles and ambulances. 'We are looking at making some changes now,' Krishna told Reuters. He said the sprawling 4,000 hectare (9,990 acres) festival site on the river banks, the equivalent of 7,500 football fields, will be divided into more sectors. The area where the rivers join 'will have additional forces and we will try to reduce the turnaround time of pilgrims in the bathing area',' he said. At present, the confluence area is manned by 220 police in addition to volunteers who manage crowds and try to maintain a standard 15 minutes of bathing time. Four other eyewitnesses recounted the chaotic scenes with hundreds of people climbing over barricades and falling over one another in between screams and cries of women and children. 'Police have killed my husband, they did not make proper arrangements,' wailed Kanchan Kopde, as her family consoled her outside the morgue at Moti Lal Nehru Medical College. Krishna said police were also injured in the incident while doing all they could to control the crowd. Another officer said the crowd management strategy was developed after months of deliberation with experts, but added it might need reconsideration. The Hindu festival – held every 12 years – is expected to draw some 400 million devotees in 2025, officials estimate. The Haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, in comparison, drew 1.8 million people last year. Opposition Congress party has blamed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party for improper arrangements and giving greater focus to arrangements for celebrities and politicians rather than ordinary people. After the stampede, the festival administration issued an order to discontinue special protocols such as barricading of roads to allow movement of VIP personnel. Shweta Arya, 21, a medical student who with her group of five friends was among those who got trapped, said the festival administration was to blame. 'It was a clear failure on their part. Many lives would have been saved if they had just removed the barricades to let us through,' Arya said.
Reuters
30-01-2025
- Reuters
Moments before deadly stampede at India's Maha Kumbh, devotees pleaded to open more routes
Summary Devotees say police ignored pleas to open barricades, causing panic 'Police have killed my husband', says woman pilgrim Death toll more than 50, say authorities Opposition blames government for prioritising VIPs over safety Police make changes to managing sprawling festival site PRAYAGRAJ, India, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Moments before a deadly stampede at the world's biggest religious gathering in India, Hindu devotees queuing to take a spiritual bath in a river said they pleaded with police to open barricaded routes to thin out a surging crowd. Police did not respond, they said, and soon people squeezed in the massive crowd began fainting, creating panic at the Maha Kumbh Mela Hindu festival in the northern city of Prayagraj. "People were asking police to open the barricades to other routes as it was suffocating to stand there in that crowd for almost an hour. We couldn't breathe," Jagwanti Devi, who was in the crowd with her family of six, said on Thursday. "Then suddenly my mother fainted, and some other elderly people also fainted, which created a commotion. We fell down and many people stepped over us," said Devi, wailing next to the bodies of her mother and sister-in-law at a city mortuary. At least 30 people died in the stampede that broke just after midnight on Wednesday, according to official data, but authorities speaking on condition of anonymity at the mortuary said the death toll was nearly double at more than 50. A Reuters witness counted at least 39 bodies inside the morgue late Wednesday afternoon, by when some bodies had been handed over to relatives, but police said the excess bodies were unrelated deaths. 80 MILLION CROWD UNEXPECTED Vaibhav Krishna, a deputy inspector general at the festival, and two other officers, said the crowd of 80 million was four times larger than the expected size and all the devotees wanted to go to the main bathing area at the confluence of three rivers rather than spreading out. The first alert on police systems of a crowd surge came an hour before midnight on Tuesday and a second alert 45 minutes after midnight, by which time police had sent additional forces to the area, Krishna said. The first casualty report came half an hour later. Police said the path leading to the main bathing area is only 50 metres (150 feet) wide and barricaded on either side to avoid people spilling over to other paths used by Hindu ascetics and for quick movement of police vehicles and ambulances. "We are looking at making some changes now," Krishna told Reuters. He said the sprawling 4,000 hectare (9,990 acres) festival site on the river banks, the equivalent of 7,500 football fields, will be divided into more sectors. The area where the rivers join "will have additional forces and we will try to reduce the turnaround time of pilgrims in the bathing area"," he said. At present, the confluence area is manned by 220 police in addition to volunteers who manage crowds and try to maintain a standard 15 minutes of bathing time. 'POLICE KILLED MY HUSBAND' Four other eyewitnesses recounted the chaotic scenes with hundreds of people climbing over barricades and falling over one another in between screams and cries of women and children. "Police have killed my husband, they did not make proper arrangements," wailed Kanchan Kopde, as her family consoled her outside the morgue at Moti Lal Nehru Medical College. Krishna said police were also injured in the incident while doing all they could to control the crowd. Another officer said the crowd management strategy was developed after months of deliberation with experts, but added it might need reconsideration. The Hindu festival - held every 12 years - is expected to draw some 400 million devotees in 2025, officials estimate. The Haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, in comparison, drew 1.8 million people last year. Opposition Congress party has blamed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party for improper arrangements and giving greater focus to arrangements for celebrities and politicians rather than ordinary people. After the stampede, the festival administration issued an order to discontinue special protocols such as barricading of roads to allow movement of VIP personnel. Shweta Arya, 21, a medical student who with her group of five friends was among those who got trapped, said the festival administration was to blame. "It was a clear failure on their part. Many lives would have been saved if they had just removed the barricades to let us through," Arya said.
The National
29-01-2025
- General
- The National
Maha Kumbh Mela: Nearly 40 feared dead in crowd crush at Indian festival
Nearly 40 people were feared dead and at least 10 injured in a crowd crush at the Maha Kumbh Mela in northern India, where tens of millions of pilgrims gathered for bathing on the most auspicious day of the six-week Hindu festival. Drone video showed millions of devotees, shoulder to shoulder, arriving before dawn broke on Wednesday at a temporary township in Prayagraj at the confluence of three rivers, the Ganges, Yamuna, and the mythical, invisible Saraswati. Video and photos after the crush showed bodies being taken away on stretchers and people sitting on the ground crying, while others stepped over a thick layer of discarded clothes, shoes, backpacks and blankets left as people tried to escape. Almost 40 bodies were taken to the local Moti Lal Nehru Medical College hospital mortuary, three police sources told news agency Reuters, although the government has yet to officially announce casualty numbers. 'More bodies are coming in. We have nearly 40 bodies here. We are transferring them out as well and handing over to families one by one,' a source said. Senior police officer Vaibhav Krishna said the force could not give an official number because they were busy with crowd management. The cause of the crush was unclear. Some witnesses spoke of a huge push that caused devotees to fall upon each other, while others said closure of routes to the water brought the dense crowd to a standstill and caused people to collapse from suffocation. 'There was commotion, everybody started pushing, pulling, climbing over one another. My mother collapsed … then my sister-in-law. People ran over them,' said Jagwanti Devi, 40, as she sat in an ambulance with the bodies of her relatives. 'I saw many people falling and getting walked on by the crowd … many children and women getting lost, crying for help,' said Ravin, a devotee who gave only his first name. He had travelled from India's financial capital of Mumbai for the festival. A Rapid Action Force – a special unit called in during crisis situations – was sent to bring the situation under control and undertake rescue efforts, officials said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and gave 'directions for normalisation of the situation and relief', said Indian news agency ANI. Mr Adityanath appealed to people to take a dip at the nearest riverbank rather than trying to reach the confluence, which is believed to absolve devotees of their sins and confer salvation from the cycle of birth and death. 'All of you should follow the instructions of the administration and co-operate in making arrangements,' he said on X, as people continued to bathe in other parts of the sprawling temporary city. The world's largest congregation of people, the Hindu festival has already hosted gigantic daily crowds, with nearly 148 million people attending since it began two weeks ago. They ranged from Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah to Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani and celebrities such as Coldplay's Chris Martin and actress Dakota Johnson, whom Indian media reported had reached Prayagraj on Tuesday. Mr Modi was also expected to visit the festival next month. Authorities had expected a record 100 million people to throng the temporary township in Prayagraj on Wednesday for the event, considered the most auspicious day due to an alignment of celestial bodies for the first time in 144 years. Authorities had undertaken several measures to cater to the enormous crowd, including increased security and medical personnel, and special trains and buses. AI software was also used to manage the numbers. A similar crush broke out on the most auspicious day of the festival when it was last held in 2013, resulting in the deaths of at least 36 pilgrims.
Daily Tribune
29-01-2025
- Health
- Daily Tribune
Stampede at Maha Kumbh Mela Claims Nearly 40 Lives, Local Police
A tragic stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in northern India on Wednesday led to the deaths of nearly 40 people, according to police sources cited by Reuters. The incident occurred as tens of millions of pilgrims gathered to bathe in the sacred river waters on what is considered the most auspicious day of the six-week festival. More than 12 hours after the disaster, bodies were still being brought to the Moti Lal Nehru Medical College hospital morgue, although the government had yet to release official casualty figures. 'More bodies are coming in. We have nearly 40 bodies here. We are transferring them out as well and handing them over to families one by one,' a police source stated. Senior police officer Vaibhav Krishna, when approached for comment, said authorities were focused on managing the crowd and could not yet confirm the official toll. Distraught relatives gathered at the morgue, waiting to identify their loved ones who perished in the stampede. The chaos reportedly erupted when crowds surged toward the confluence of three rivers, a site of immense religious significance where immersion is believed to bring spiritual purification. Eyewitnesses described a massive push that resulted in people falling over one another. Some claimed that the closure of access routes to the river intensified the congestion, leading to suffocation and collapses within the dense crowd. 'There was commotion, everybody started pushing, pulling, climbing over one another. My mother collapsed... then my sister-in-law. People ran over them,' said Jagwanti Devi, 40, as she sat in an ambulance, mourning her lost family members. Doctors at Prayagraj's SRN Hospital, where some of the injured were taken, reported that many of the deceased had suffered heart attacks or had pre-existing conditions such as diabetes. 'People came in with fractures, broken bones... Some collapsed on the spot and were brought in dead,' said a hospital official who requested anonymity. As investigations continue, authorities are under pressure to ensure better crowd control measures at future religious gatherings of this magnitude.
Dubai Eye
29-01-2025
- Dubai Eye
Dozens killed in India's Kumbh festival stampede
Dozens of people were killed in a pre-dawn stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in northern India on Wednesday, police sources said, as tens of millions gathered to take a dip in sacred river waters on the most auspicious day of a six-week Hindu festival. Bodies were still being brought to the local Moti Lal Nehru Medical College hospital morgue more than 12 hours after the tragedy at the world's biggest gathering of humanity, although authorities were yet to officially announce the casualty numbers. A Reuters witness counted 39 bodies inside the morgue. One of the three police sources and a fourth officer said all 39 were stampede victims. There were 15 ambulances outside the morgue and about half a dozen people looking inside for their loved ones. Senior police officer Vaibhav Krishna said when he was reached for comment that police could not give the official numbers because they were busy with crowd management. Distraught relatives queued up to identify those killed by the stampede, which occurred when crowds surged towards the confluence of three rivers, where immersion is considered particularly sacred. Some witnesses spoke of a huge push that caused devotees to fall on each other, while others said closure of routes to the water brought the dense crowd to a standstill and caused people to collapse due to suffocation. "There was commotion, everybody started pushing, pulling, climbing over one another. My mother my sister-in-law. People ran over them," said Jagwanti Devi, 40, as she sat in an ambulance with the bodies of her relatives. Saroja, who had traveled for the festival from the southern city of Belagavi and gave only her first name, blamed police for the deaths of four members of her family. "Police didn't make proper arrangements. They are responsible for this," she wailed. Police have said they are doing all they can to manage the vast crowds. An official at Prayagraj's SRN Hospital, where some of the injured were taken, said those who died had either suffered heart attacks or had comorbidities like diabetes. "People came in with fractures, broken collapsed on the spot and were brought dead," said the official, who did not want to be named. Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences to "devotees who have lost their loved ones", without specifying the number of dead. Yogi Adityanath, chief minister of Uttar Pradesh state where the festival city of Prayagraj is located, said the stampede was set off when some devotees tried to jump barricades put up to manage crowds. At the scene after the stampede, some people sat on the ground crying, while others stepped over belongings left by those trying to escape the crush. OPPOSITION PARTIES BLAME "MISMANAGEMENT" The Hindu festival is expected to draw some 400 million people overall, according to officials, compared with the Haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia which drew 1.8 million last year. By Tuesday, nearly 200 million people had attended the festival since it started two weeks ago, officials said, adding that more than 57 million people had taken a holy dip until 4:00 p.m. (1030 GMT) on Wednesday alone. Devout Hindus believe taking a dip at the confluence of three sacred rivers - the Ganga, the Yamuna, and the mythical, invisible Saraswati - absolves people of sins and, during the Kumbh, also brings salvation from the cycle of life and death. Attendees this year ranged from Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah to Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani and celebrities like Coldplay's Chris Martin, who local media reported reached Prayagraj on Tuesday. Modi was expected to visit the festival next month. Authorities had expected a record 100 million people to throng the temporary township in Prayagraj on Wednesday, and had deployed additional security and medical personnel along with AI-software-based technology to manage the crowd. A Rapid Action Force (RAF) - a special police unit called in during crisis - was deployed to bring the situation under control after the stampede and the 'holy dips' were also closely regulated, with devotees going first and ascetics beginning their processions only after devotee numbers reduced. Television visuals showed scores of ascetics, smeared in holy ash or wearing saffron, moving towards the confluence as security personnel and dense crowds of devotees looked on and helicopters showered petals from above. Social media posts spoke of heavy traffic congestion on roads leading into Prayagraj as authorities tried to manage the crowd, leaving several people stranded. "I planned this trip for over a year, but I've been stuck in traffic for 19 hours," American travel blogger Drew Binsky said on Instagram, where he has more than 1.2 million followers. Opposition parties blamed the stampede on what they called the government's "mismanagement" and "VIP culture". "VIP culture should be curbed and the government should make better arrangements to meet the needs of common devotees," Rahul Gandhi, leader of main opposition Congress party, said on X, referring to politicians and celebrities being treated differently. A similar stampede on the most auspicious day of the festival when it was last held in 2013 had killed at least 36 pilgrims.
