An early morning stampede at the world’s largest religious gathering claimed at least 15 lives in India on Wednesday, with many more injured as a surging crowd broke through a police cordon, trampling bystanders.
Every year millions gather the Kumbh Mela as Hindus believe that taking a dip at the confluence of three sacred rivers—the Ganga, Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati—washes away sins and grants salvation from the cycle of birth and death.
Officials estimate that 100 million people will attend the festival on Wednesday, setting a new record for the highest single-day attendance at the Kumbh Mela.
Crowd-related tragedies are common at Indian religious festivals, including the Kumbh Mela, which draws tens of millions of devotees every 12 years to the northern city of Prayagraj.
What Happened?
The stampede occurred between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. (1930–2030 GMT Tuesday) near the ascetics’ arena, where barricades had been set up to control crowds during their sacred dip, according to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Videos and photographs from the aftermath showed bodies being carried away on stretchers, while distressed survivors sat on the ground in tears. Clothes, shoes, backpacks, and blankets were scattered across the area, left behind by those trying to escape the chaos.
Eyewitnesses described an overwhelming push near the river confluence, where a dip is considered particularly holy, causing people to fall over each other. Chief Minister Adityanath urged attendees to avoid the affected area.
Vijay Kumar, a devotee from Patna, blamed the barricades and policemen with baton for the sudden panic as people pushed each other in order to get out. Kumar said there were people lying all around and he didn’t know if they were dead or alive.
