A Look At The Timeline Of Major Stampedes At Religious Places In India

In the latest incident of stampede at a religious place, at least seven people including three women, were killed while 35 others were injured during the intervening night of Sunday and Monday at the Siddheshwarnath Temple in Bihar's Jehanabad. ETV Bharat profiles major stampedes at religious places in India in recent years and the reasons for the incidents.

Hyderabad:As another fatal stampede came to light at a temple in Bihar's Jehanabad district, the tragedy revived the horrific memories of similar incidents in recent times prominenently the deadly stampede during the sermon by Narayan Saakar Hari aka 'Bhole Baba' at his ashram in Uttar Pradesh's Hathras in which over 100 people lost their lives.

In the Bihar stampede incident, seven people, including three women, were killed while 35 others were injured during the intervening night of Sunday and Monday at the Siddheshwarnath Temple in Bihar's Jehanabad. The incident occurred at the Vanavar hill of Makhdumpur block.

Let us have a look at the timeline of major stampedes at the religious places in recent times.

Rath Yatra, Puri:One devotee was dead while five others were injured in stampede-like situation during Rath Yatra in Odisha's Puri on July 7, 2024.

Hathras:On July 2 this year, at least 121 people were killed and many more injured in a stampede that occurred Tuesday evening during a religious gathering in the Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh. A large crowd had gathered in a village in Hathras district for a sermon by a popular preacher Narayan Saakar Hari aka 'Bhole Baba'.

Kottankulangara Temple Stampede:On March 25, 2024, a five-year-old girl died in a stampede at the Kottankulangara temple, Kollam in Kerala.

Shreeji Temple Stampede:On March 17, 2024, a stampede broke out during a pre-Holi event at the revered Shreeji Temple in Uttar Pradesh's Mathura. The incident resulted in at least six devotees falling unconscious, with injuries reported among the crowd.

Mathura Temple Incident:On December 24, 2023, two women devotees died of suffocation due to overcrowding at a Mathura temple on Sunday. The incident took place at 4.30 pm at Banke Bihari temple in Uttar Pradesh's Mathura.

Banke Bihari Temple Stampede:On Aug 20, 2022, a 65-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman died, while seven devotees were injured in a stampede-like situation at the Banke Bihari Temple in Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh.

Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Stampede:On January 1, 2022,12 people died and over a dozen were injured in a stampede at the famous Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Jammu and Kashmir triggered by a heavy rush of devotees.

‘Chitra Pournami’ Festival Stampede: On 21 April, 2019, seven people died in stampede at temple festival in Tamil Nadu’s Trichy. According to police, the incident took place around 11am during the ‘Chitra Pournami’ festival at the Karuppasamy temple at Muthayampalayam village, Trichy. "It was ‘Pidikkaasu’, an event of collecting coins from the priest before the Lord Karuppasamy idol in the temple. As too many people tried to get ‘Pidikkaasu’ the stampede occurred,” said a police official.

Baidyanath Jyotirlinga Temple Stampede:On 10 Aug, 2015, at least 11 people were killed and 50 injured in a stampede at a temple in Jharkhand's Deoghar town. The stampede at the Baidyanath Jyotirlinga temple in Jharkhand erupted after pilgrims surged towards the building shortly after the doors opened, the officer told AFP.Those sleeping in the kilometres-long queue were trampled as others pushed towards the doors, SN Pradhan, additional director general of police in Jharkhand, said.

'Pushkaram' Festival Stampede: On 14 July, 2014, 27 pilgrims died and 20 others were injured in a stampede at a major bathing spot on the banks of the Godavari river where a huge crowd of devotees had gathered on the opening day of 'Pushkaram' festival in Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh.

'Parikrama' Stampede, MP:On 25 Aug, 2014, 10 pilgrims were killed and over 20 injured when a rumour triggered a stampede at a temple in Madhya Pradesh's Satna district, authorities said. The stampede took place when the pilgrims were performing the 'Parikrama' (circumambulation) of a hill near the Kamta Nath temple in Chitrakoot.

Ratangarh Hindu Temple Stampede: On October 13, 2013,89 people were killed and over 100 injured in stampede near Ratangarh Hindu temple in Datia, Madhya Pradesh. The 89 people were killed in the stampede on the bridge over Sindh river leading to the temple at Ratangarh, where lakhs of devotees had congregated, following rumours by some unidentified persons that it was collapsing," Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police, Chambal Range, D K Arya said.

Sabarimala: On 14 January, 2011,106 pilgrims were killed in a stampede at Sabarimala shrine in Kerela; while as over 100 were injured. Stampede occured when a jeep crashed into homebound pilgrims at Pulmedu in Kerala's Idukki district. The pilgrims were coming to catch a bus when there was a stampede at Pulmedu. This resulted in the death of 104 people, while more than 40 were injured,"

Ram Janki Temple Stampede: On 04 March, 2010,63 people were killed in a stampede at Ram Janki Temple in Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh, as people collected to get free clothes and food from a self-styled godman. The stampede occurred during a religious congregation at Ram Janki temple in Mangarh area of Pratapgarh district as around 5,000 devotees had gathered for a bhandara (community lunch) organised by Kripalu Maharaj.According to initial reports, one of the main gates at the site collapsed due to the rush of devotees leading to the stampede.

Chamunda Devi Temple Incident: On 30 September, 2008, 244 people were suffocated to death in a stampede at the Chamunda Devi temple located inside the Mehrangarh Fort premises in Jodhpur in Rajasthan. The incident occurred in a narrow passageway that leads to the deity in the temple, where around 300 devotees had crowded. Senior officials had then stated that the stampede was caused after a few devotees slipped and triggered a chain reaction.

Naina Devi temple Stampede: On 03 August, 2006, nearly 150 devotees were killed and over 400 injured in stampede in Himachal Pradesh's Naina Devi temple. Rumours of a landslide and rolling down of boulders from a nearby hilltop spread fear among the devotees resulting in the stampede as a large number of people trekking up and returning from the shrine ran into each other in a bid to escape.

Mandher Devi Temple Incident: On 26 January, 2005, thousands of devotees thronging Mandhar Devi temple, panicked after sparks flew from an electrical short circuit in the wiring at Mandher Devi temple near Wai in Satara district in western Maharashtra. The crowds rushed to a narrow path leading to the temple, and a stampede resulted. As people tripped and fell over each other, 291 people died over 200 were injured.

Kumbh Mela Stampede: On 27 August, 2003, 39 people were killed and around 140 injured in a stampede during the holy bath at the Kumbh Mela in Maharashtra's Nashik district.

Major Reasons

A study conducted on human stampedes at religious festivals indicates that religious mass gatherings in India are often organized in rural areas, thereby increasing the vulnerability due to venue inadequacies and infrastructure limitations. The report illustrates at length:

1. Safety and comfort of religious mass gatherings is primarily influenced by vulnerability of the location and their accompanying characteristics.
2. Religious festivals, especially when located at remote rural areas and on hilly terrains, and on the foothills or at river banks lacking proper pathways always pose a geographic risk to pilgrims.
3. Steep slopes, uneven topography of the venue, dead ends, slippery and muddy floors, narrow passages, convergence of pedestrian flow to a single point are among the common risks prevailing in religious gathering sites, compromising safety and triggering stampedes.
4. Over the years, risk management strategies to tackle religious stampedes in India have been inadequate and have failed consistently.
5. A 2013 study published by International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction (IJDRR) points out that religious gatherings and pilgrimages have been venues for 79% of the stampedes in India.
6. In developed countries, most stampedes take place in stadia, venues of music concerts and night clubs, but in India and other developing countries, the majority of the crowd disasters happen at religious places.
7. Most of the religious festivals are located in areas like banks of rivers, hilly terrains or mountain tops. These areas lack proper pathways, posing a geographical risk to the pilgrims," says Faisel T. Illiyas, assistant professor at Kerala government’s Institute of Land and Disaster Management, who is also the author of the IJDRR study.

Mitigation Measures By IIMA

1. The study, conducted by Indian Institute of Management- Ahmedabad (IIMA), suggested various solutions for managing crowds in mass gatherings including deployment of snake line approach, discourage general admission, have alternative routes for releasing excessive crowd pressure and formulate plans to take care of VIP visitors.It said the authorities should not hesitate to refuse entry to VIPs if assessment indicates that it will add to safety concerns and ensure emergency exits are not barricaded, blocked or otherwise inaccessible.
2. The study said suggested that generators, distribution boxes, circuit breakers should be kept in isolated place away from the mischievous crowd elements, and there should be adequate fencing and security, if required, and electrical appliances should have protection from the weather too.
3. There should be safe and clearly labelled storage of fuel (e.g. diesel to be used by generators) and attempts should be made to minimise tripping hazards (electrical cables, wires) coming in the way of crowd movements and ensure that these are covered and there is sufficient number of fire extinguishers at critical control points.