30 Dead, 60 Injured In Maha Kumbh Stampede, Says UP Top Cop
30 Dead, 60 Injured In Maha Kumbh Stampede, Says UP Top Cop
M.U.H
29/01/202529
Prayagraj:Thirty people were killed in the stampede that happened just before dawn at the Maha Kumbh venue in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj, the police chief that oversees security at the massive religious gathering told reporters today.
Twenty-five bodies have been identified, police officer Vaibhav Krishna told reporters, adding 60 were injured. Many have been hospitalised.
The announcement of casualties came hours after local reports and Prayagraj residents posted on social media about deaths at the stampede. The reports were, however, not consistent with the number of dead.
The pre-dawn stampede at the Sangam area of the Maha Kumbh broke out after many pilgrims jostled for space to take a holy dip on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya, one of the most auspicious days.
Many people started breaking barricades before the stampede happened, the police officer said.
Sarojini, a Karnataka resident who came to take a dip in the Maha Kumbh, told news agency PTI, "We came in a batch of 60 people in two buses. There were nine people in our group. Suddenly there was pushing in the crowd, and we got trapped. Many fell down and the crowd became uncontrollable."
A woman at a local hospital, whose child was injured, said there was nowhere to go when people started pushing in the massive crowd. "Some people who pushed us were laughing while we begged them for kindness towards the children,.
