SRINAGAR: At least 12 pilgrims died and another 13 sustained injuries in a stampede at a Hindu shrine in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) on Saturday as thousands of pilgrims massed to offer prayers, officials said.
The disaster happened around 3:00am while it was still dark on the route to the Vaishno Devi shrine in occupied Kashmir. “Twelve pilgrims died and 14 were injured in the stampede,” said senior police officer Mukesh Singh.
The stampede broke out when a huge crowd of devotees entered the Vaishno Devi Bhawan shrine, another official said. Other reports suggested an argument had broken out between devotees.
Rescue operations started immediately and the injured — some of whom were reported to be in a serious condition — were taken to hospital.
Video footage on social media showed small minivan ambulances with flashing lights rushing to hospitals while it was still dark, as well as massive crowds. Access to the shrine was halted after the stampede but later resumed.
Ravinder, the witness, said that the crush happened at a point where huge crowds of people coming down from the shrine meet those going up. He estimated that there were at least 100,000 people.
“Extremely saddened by the loss of lives due to a stampede at Mata Vaishno Devi Bhawan,” said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a condolence message.
The shrine to Vaishno Devi, a manifestation of Hindu goddess Vaishnavi, is in the hills some 60 kilometres from the city of Jammu.
People travel to the nearby busy town of Katra and then trek upwards for around 15 kilometres on foot or by pony to the cave entrance where they often have to wait for hours.
Millions of shrines dot Hindu-majority India’s cities, towns and villages as well as remote sites in the Himalayas or in jungles in the south.
Some are hugely important pilgrimage sites and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government has invested heavily in improving infrastructure to ease access.
