In India, six people dead in Hindu temple crowd surge

Victims at a religious festival in India. Photo: apnews.com

At least six people died and dozens were injured in a stampede that occurred on Sunday at a popular Hindu temple in the city of Haridwar in northern India. This was reported by apnews.com.

The tragedy occurred in the morning hours at the Mansa Devi temple, one of the main pilgrimage centers in the region, especially during the sacred month of Shravan.

According to preliminary data, the incident in the pilgrimage city of Haridwar occurred after a high-voltage electric wire reportedly fell on a temple path, triggering panic among the large crowd of devotees. Someone in the crowd shouted that there was electricity on the path, causing a mass exodus of pilgrims.

“Since the path is narrow and meant only for foot traffic, confusion and panic spread instantly,” said local priest Ujjwal Pandit. He also noted that the wall along the path likely worsened the "crowd bottleneck".

According to a statement by senior Uttarakhand state official Vinay Shankar Pandey, six people died, and another 29 were taken to hospital. Rescue services and police promptly arrived at the scene, conducting an emergency evacuation of the victims.

"The situation is now under control, but the panic led to tragic consequences," Pandey told the Associated Press by phone from Haridwar.

The causes of the wire break are still being investigated. It is also being checked whether safety and crowd control measures were observed.

The Mansa Devi temple, located on a hilltop, can be reached by cable car or on foot and attracts thousands of pilgrims daily, especially on religious holidays and weekends. The city of Haridwar itself annually hosts millions of devotees.

Crowds at religious events are not uncommon in India. Local infrastructure and security services often struggle to cope with the influx of pilgrims.

Earlier, the UOJ reported that dozens of people died in a stampede at a religious festival in India.

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