A tragic stampede at a religious festival in northern India led to the deaths of at least 121 people due to severe overcrowding and a lack of exits. The event, which was only permitted to accommodate 80,000 people, drew around 250,000 attendees. Five fatalities occurred on Wednesday morning, with 28 people still hospitalized. Deadly stampedes are unfortunately common at Indian religious gatherings, where large crowds gather in small areas with inadequate infrastructure and safety measures.
The chaotic scene at the festival in Uttar Pradesh state was worsened by the quarter of a million people who showed up, far exceeding the 80,000 capacity of the event. Panic ensued as the crowd surged toward a preacher, known as Bhole Baba, causing chaos as volunteers struggled to intervene. An initial police report indicated that thousands of people filed towards the exits, slipping on muddy ground and causing people to fall and be crushed. Most of the deceased were women. The situation continued outside the tent, as followers ran towards the preacher’s departing vehicle, leading to more casualties.
Unfortunately, most organizers of the event, including Bhole Baba and other officials, were unaccounted for. Authorities are conducting an investigation into the incident. The Sri Jagar Guru Baba organization, which the guru was associated with, had prepared for the festival for over two weeks. Row of parked vehicles, stretching nearly 2 miles, were found near the village, as devotees of the guru traveled from across the state to attend. Witnesses described the chaos and horror of the stampede, with local residents assisting in moving and lifting the deceased.
Experts noted that safety norms were violated during the event, as it was held in a makeshift tent with insufficient exits. Sanjay Srivastava, a disaster management expert, highlighted the lack of multiple exit routes. The tragedy at the festival evoked previous stampedes that have occurred in India during religious gatherings, resulting in numerous casualties. In 2013, pilgrims at a Hindu temple in Madhya Pradesh trampled each other in fear of a collapsing bridge, leading to over 100 deaths. Another stampede in Kerala in 2011 claimed the lives of more than 100 people.
The aftermath of the stampede was marked by heart-wrenching scenes at local hospitals, where relatives gathered in distress to identify their deceased loved ones. Victims were placed on stretchers, covered in white sheets, on the grounds outside the hospitals. Buses and trucks transported dozens of casualties to morgues following the tragic incident. The stampede has left a lasting impact on the village residents, who have never witnessed such a tragedy before. A local resident, Sonu Kumar, criticized the preacher for leaving the scene and leaving his devotees behind in a perilous situation. The screams and chaos of the stampede have shaken the community to its core, sparking calls for improved safety measures at religious gatherings in the future.
