10 devotees injured in Puri Jagannath Temple stampede in Odisha

After the aarti when devotees were allowed inside the temple, many of them fell on the ground and were stepped on by others. Finally, they were rescued by the police and 10 devotees were taken to the hospital.

Puri:Nearly 10 devotees, including elderly people, were seriously injured in a stampede in Puri Lord Jagannath Temple this morning. The injured were rushed to the nearby Puri district hospital. Police, however, said there was overcrowding inside the temple but no stampede occurred. The incident took place during the 'Mangala Aarti'.

The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) chief administrator Ranjan Kumar Das said that the sudden rush of devotees in the early hours of Friday led to overcrowding inside the temple. We have been augmenting the arrangements to ensure smooth darshan of devotees, Das said.

A huge crowd of devotees flock to the Puri Jagannath Temple during the auspicious Kartik month every year. After the aarti, devotees were allowed inside the temple. While the crowd rushed inside, many devotees fell on the ground and were stepped on by others. The injured were helped out by the police and then taken to the hospital.

According to eyewitnesses around 20 devotees fell on the ground and 10 of them fainted when a stampede occurred. The injured were first provided treatment on the temple premises and then shifted to Puri district hospital. Ranjan Das, a devotee, said many people fell after being pushed from behind. They cried out for help but people stepped on them. Finally, the Jagannath Temple Police (JTP) rescued these devotees.

Most of the injured persons suffered minor injuries and were discharged after treatment, officials said. Puri superintendent of police KV Singh said, "There was a huge rush inside the temple but no stampede had occurred. A total of 15 platoons of the police were deployed to control the crowd. The strength of personnel will be increased keeping in view the rush of devotees," Singh said.