New Delhi: Thirty people died and over 60 were injured in the pre-dawn stampede at the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, the Uttar Pradesh Police have confirmed.
Millions gathered Wednesday to take a holy dip on Mauni Amavasya, one of the most sacred days of the festival.
At a press conference, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Vaibhav Krishna said 25 of the deceased had been identified so far.
Krishna said the tragedy took place between 1 am and 2 am Wednesday, just before Brahma Muhurta, when a large crowd gathered at the Akhara Marg for the Shahi Snan or royal bath.
The overwhelming crowd caused the barricades to break, leading to a chaotic situation as people ran over others to take a holy dip at the sangam of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati.
Distraught relatives queued up outside hospitals where the bodies were taken, with some witnesses telling Reuters that a huge push caused devotees to fall on each other. Others said the closure of routes to the water brought the crowd to a standstill and caused people to collapse due to suffocation.
Krishna added that a crowd started running over devotees waiting on the river bank. “The administration quickly enforced the rescue operation and created a green corridor for ambulances, and took 90 injured to hospitals. Unfortunately, 30 of those devotees have died,” the DIG said.
Krishna, who is in charge of the Maha Kumbh, further said, “At present, the situation is normal. Keeping in mind the convenience of devotees, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has requested all saints and akharas to take a holy dip with some delay. Amrit Snan of the akharas has been concluded safely.”
VIDEO | Maha Kumbh 2025: Addressing a press conference, DIG Kumbh Mela Vaibhav Krishna confirms 30 casualties in the stampede incident.
“On the Mauni Amavasya Snan, between 1 and 2 am ahead of the Brahm Muhurta, huge crowd gathered on the Akhara route, because of which the… pic.twitter.com/rgauSELmhJ
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) January 29, 2025
Jagwanti Devi, 40, told Reuters that there was commotion, and everybody started pushing, pulling, climbing over one another. “My mother collapsed… then my sister-in-law. People ran over them,” she said, sitting in an ambulance with the bodies of her relatives.
Saroja, who had travelled for the festival from Belagavi, blamed police for the deaths of four members of her family, according to Reuters.
Police didn’t make proper arrangements, she claimed as the force tried to manage the vast crowds.
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 on Wednesday alone.
Also read: Politics is killing the Yamuna River. LG-CM war made it worse