Indore:In a major mishap, at least 14 people died and several others were trapped after the cover of a well they were standing on caved in at a temple in Madhya Pradesh's Indore on Thursday, officials said. The district administration and fire and rescue personnel were roped in to rescue the victims.
As per the latest inputs, 14 bodies were recovered from the site while at least 19 people were rescued from the well. The incident was reported at the Beleshwar temple located in Patel Nagar on Thursday. Nearly 30-35 devotees fell into the well, said Indore Police Commissioner Makrand Deoskar citing eyewitness accounts.
"19 people rescued alive. 11 bodies recovered. Condition of a few among those rescued is critical...CM has announced Rs 5 Lakhs each ex-gratia for deceased; Rs 50,000 each for injured," Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra told the media. Later the death toll increased to 14 after more bodies were recovered from the site. According to a senior police official, the devotees including the elderly, women, and children, were worshiping the deity on the occasion of Ram Navami, standing over the well when the mishap occurred.
"All of them were trapped in the well. Rescue works are underway. We have rescued 19 people from the well," the official said. Sources confirmed that 14 bodies were also recovered from the site. The police team, SDERF (State Disaster Emergency Response Force) team, and district revenue officials were involved in the rescue operations. The senior officials visited the site and took stock of the rescue operations.