30 dead, 60 injured in Maha Kumbh stampede in Prayagraj

NEW DELHI: At least 30 people died and 60 were injured in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj early Wednesday morning, just before the crucial ‘Amrit Snan’ on Mauni Amavasya.

The massive gathering, expected to draw nearly 10 crore pilgrims, led to chaos as devotees surged towards the sacred Triveni Sangam.

DIG Kumbh Mela Vaibhav Krishna confirmed the casualties and said, "Out of these (30 deceased), 25 have been identified while the remaining five are yet to be identified. Some of these are from other states too... four from Karnataka, one from Assam, one from Gujarat... some injured devotees have been taken away by their relatives. 36 injured are undergoing treatment at the local medical college. For the convenience of devotees, Mela administration has issued helpline number 1920."



Providing details on the incident, he added, "On the Mauni Amavasya Snan, between 1 and 2 am ahead of the Brahm Muhurta, a huge crowd gathered on the Akhara route, because of which the barricades on the other side broke. The crowd on this side crossed to the other side and started running over devotees waiting for Brahm Muhurta... The administration quickly enforced the rescue operation and created a green corridor for ambulances, and took 90 injured to the hospitals. Unfortunately, 30 of those devotees have died."

Sarojini an eyewitness of the stampede from Karnataka, who arrived with a group of 60 people, said, "We were nine people together when suddenly the crowd started pushing. We got trapped, many of us fell, and everything went out of control." She added, "There was no way to escape; people were pushing from all sides."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences in a post on X and said, "The accident that happened in Prayagraj Maha Kumbh is extremely sad. My deepest condolences to the devotees who have lost their loved ones in this. Along with this, I wish for the speedy recovery of all the injured. The local administration is engaged in helping the victims in every possible way. In this regard, I have spoken to chief minister Yogi ji and I am constantly in touch with the state government."


To assist devotees, the Mela administration has issued a helpline number, 1920.