Maha Kumbh Stampede: There was a stampede on the Sangam coast of Prayagraj at around 1.30 am on Tuesday-Wednesday night. So far 35-40 people are reported dead in the accident. More than 70 devotees are injured. The death toll may increase. According to various media sources – First 14 bodies were brought to the medical college for postmortem. Later the bodies were brought from the fair area in 8-10 ambulances.
Here, the administration did not give any information about the number of deaths or injured even after 14 hours of the accident. CM Yogi Adityanath has appealed to the people to maintain restraint. He said- Devotees should not think of bathing only at Sangam. Ganga is sacred everywhere, they should bathe on the banks where they are.
PM Modi inquired about the incident from CM Yogi over the phone in the morning.PM Modi has expressed condolences to the families of the deceased.
I am in constant touch with the Uttar Pradesh government. Crores of devotees have reached there today, the bathing process was interrupted for some time, but now people are bathing smoothly for several hours.
-PM Modi at an election rally in Delhi
On the other hand, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has alleged that the stampede has happened due to VIP culture and government’s mismanagement. SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said that Maha Kumbh should be handed over to the army.
2 Main Reasons for Stampede
- Most of the pontoon bridges were closed due to Amrit Snan. Due to this, crores of people reaching Sangam kept on gathering. Due to which some people got stuck in the barricades and fell. Seeing this, rumors of stampede spread.
- There were no separate entry and exit routes at Sangam Nose. People were going back from the same route they were coming from. In such a situation, when the stampede occurred, people did not get a chance to escape. They kept falling on each other.
After the accident, more than 70 ambulances reached the Sangam coast. The injured and the dead were taken to the hospital by these ambulances. After the accident, NSG commandos took charge of the Sangam coast. Entry of common people was stopped in the Sangam Nose area. To prevent the crowd from increasing, devotees have been stopped in the districts adjoining Prayagraj. The administration there has been alerted.
Today is the Mauni Amavasya bath in Maha Kumbh, due to which about 9 crore devotees are expected to be present in the city. According to the administration, 8 to 10 crore devotees are expected to take a dip at 44 ghats including Sangam till late night today.
A day before this, on Tuesday, more than 5.5 crore devotees took a holy dip in the Sangam. More than 60 thousand soldiers have been deployed for security in the entire city.
After the stampede, Maha Kumbh Mela’s OSD Akanksha Rana came in front of the media and gave information. She said that the incident happened due to the increasing pressure of the crowd at Sangam. However, she claims that no one is very serious. But the injured are continuously coming in. The central hospital of the Maha Kumbh Mela has been converted into a cantonment. Media personnel are also not being allowed to enter the hospital.
According to the Media Persons stampede broke out at Sangam Nose due to the rumour. Some women fell on the ground and people ran over them. After the accident, more than 70 ambulances reached the Sangam beach. The injured and the dead were taken to the hospital by these ambulances.
After the accident, NSG commandos took charge of the Sangam coast. Entry of common people was stopped in the Sangam Nose area. To prevent the crowd from increasing, entry of devotees has been stopped in all the districts bordering Prayagraj city.
Today is the Mauni Amavasya bath in Maha Kumbh, due to which about 5 crore devotees are expected to be present in the city. According to the administration, 8 to 10 crore devotees are expected to take a dip at 44 ghats including Sangam till late night today.
A day before this, on Tuesday, more than 5.5 crore devotees took a holy dip in the Sangam. More than 60 thousand soldiers have been deployed for security in the entire city.
See the pictures after the accident –
The president of the Akhada Parishad said- now the Akhadas will take a bath on Basant Panchami
Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad president Ravindra Puri said- We are very saddened by the incident that happened. There were thousands of devotees with us. In public interest, we decided that the Akharas will not participate in the bath today. I appeal to the people to come for bathing on Vasant Panchami instead of today. This incident happened because the devotees wanted to reach Sangam Ghat, instead they should take a dip wherever they see the holy Ganga.
Hundreds of people missing in Maha Kumbh stampede
Hundreds of people have gone missing in the stampede of Maha Kumbh. Family members are searching for their loved ones at the lost and found centers. The worker present at the center said that so far 2500 complaints have been received, but most of the missing people are being found.
PM spoke to CM Yogi on the phone
Prime Minister Modi spoke to UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath about the situation at the Maha Kumbh Mela, reviewed the developments and asked for immediate relief measures.
Also read:
Maha Kumbh Tragedy: Stampede at Sangam Shakes The Nation, How Chaos Erupted | 10 Key Points
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