A stampede broke out at the ongoing mega Hindu religious gathering of Mahakumbh in India’s Prayagraj during the early hours of Wednesday, reportedly killing dozens, as tens of millions of devotees descended on the holy city to bathe on Mauni Amavasya- the most sacred bathing day of the festival.
According to The Guardian, local officials counting casualties into hospital tents said at least 38 were feared dead while other officials and doctors have given death tolls ranging from 15 to 50.
News agency AFP quoted a doctor saying that 15 people had died in the stampede so far.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Uttar Pradesh chief Yogi Adityanath did not acknowledge any fatalities at the festival.
“Between 1am and 2am in the night, some devotees tried to cross over the barricades which were set up for the designated area for the akharas [monastic sects of warrior sadhus, or holy men] to take a bath. That caused some injuries to devotees who were immediately referred to hospital for treatment,” he said.
However, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi mourned the loss of lives in a post on X:
“My deepest condolences are with the devotees who have lost their loved ones during the mishap at Prayagraj Mahakumbh…”
How did the stampede-like situation unfold?
The Amrit Snan, or the ‘holy bath,’ on Mauni Amavasya is considered the most important ritual at Maha Kumbh, with around 10 crore pilgrims expected to attend.
Despite the stampede -like situation early morning, over 4.2 crore devotees had taken the holy bath on Wednesday alone.
Vivek Mishra, a social media content creator based in Prayagraj, told Hindustan Times that the stampede took place at around 2.30 am when a large number of devotees reached the Sangam banks.
The problem, Mishra said, was mainly because the crowd had no idea where to go after bathing. “These people were carrying heavy luggage on their heads. There were a large number of iron dustbins that could not be seen by pilgrims. A few people fell as they lost balance,” he said.
The Guardian said according to accounts by devotees, one of the worst crushes occurred after large numbers went down to the river to bathe, while others were sleeping on the floor around the congested riverbank.
“As the crowd surged in multiple directions, people began to push their way out and many began to fall to the floor, pushing over barriers and trampling each other. Another crowd crush was reported to have taken place around one of the entrances to the festival.”
An official told The Indian Express, “The barricading system was not very effective in crowd management and because of that people had to walk longer distances. Many were agitated over the last several days. There were choke points which were created because of these diversions….During the ‘Shahi Snan, chaos erupted and police had to wade into the waters to manage the huge crowd.”
Current situation and scale of the Maha Kumbh
Earlier in the morning, akharas called off Mauni Amavasya ‘Amrit Snan’ after the stampede incident at the festival.
However, by noon, as the situation was brought relatively under control, with the injured taken for treatment, officials said conditions were conducive for the Amrit Snan.
“People are bathing at all the ghats here peacefully… In the morning, there was pressure and a huge crowd. Many Akharas told us to regulate the crowd and that they would come out for the snan later. Now that the crowd is under control, our preparations for the Akharas and saints are in place,” Vaibhav Krishna, DIG Mahakumbh told news agency ANI.
Meanwhile, condolences poured in from across the political spectrum with leaders morning the loss of lives at the festival.
More than 400 million people, the biggest crowd in its history, are expected to attend this year’s Kumbh Mela festivities, held over 45 days in Prayagraj in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh.
According to state government data, until January 28, close to 20 crore people have already taken a holy bath at the festival.
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