#MahakumbhStampede: Massive ! 30 Killed , 60 Injured In Pre-Dawn Stampede ; Prime Minister Narendra Modi Expresses Grief

At least 30 people were killed and 60 injured in a pre-dawn stampede at the Sangam area of the Maha Kumbh early Wednesday as millions of pilgrims jostled for space to take a holy dip on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya, one of the most auspicious days of the Hindu calendar.

According to PTI report, Several hours after the incident took place between 1-2 am, Maha Kumbh Deputy Inspector General Vaibhav Krishna gave the details of the casualties at a press conference in Mahakumbh Nagar in the evening.

“The incident took place due to the pressure of the crowd. The crowd broke barricades and jumped to the other side, crushing those waiting there. Over 90 injured were rushed to the hospital, of whom 30 died,” he said.

The officer said 25 of the deceased have been identified. Four of them are from Karnataka and one each from Assam and Gujarat.

Among those injured, 36 are undergoing treatment at the hospital and the rest have been sent with their families.

Over seven and half crore devotees took a dip Wednesday, officials said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his condolences to the devotees who lost their family members in the stampede, describing the tragedy as ‘extremely saddening’.

Later in the night, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced a three-member judicial commission, comprising Justice Harsh Kumar, former DG V K Gupta and retd IAS V K Singh to look into the reasons behind the stampede.

He also announced an ex gratia of Rs 25 lakh each for the kin of the deceased.

“It is important to get to the bottom of the whole episode on how such a tragedy occurred,” a visibly-emotional Adityanath said, adding that the chief secretary and DGP would visit the Maha Kumbh on Thursday for an in-depth probe into the tragic incident.

DIG Krishna said barricades have been placed in the mela and akhara areas for lane management but they gave way under the pressure of the jostling.

As the barricades broke, people fell on those sitting and waiting for taking the holy dip during the ‘brahm muhurt’ (early morning time considered auspicious to perform certain activities), he said.