A stampede at the Maha Kumbh festival in Prayagraj, India, killed several people and injured many more as tens of thousands of Hindu devotees rushed to take ritual baths in the sacred rivers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences and wished for the speedy recovery of the injured. Authorities are working to manage the massive crowds and prevent further incidents.
An ambulance moves in the middle of a crowd of Hindu devotees gathered for a holy dip by the banks of the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganges, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers, on Mauni Amavasya’ or new moon day during the Maha Kumbh festival in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025.
Several pilgrims were injured, some seriously, in the stampede between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. as they tried to jump barricades erected for the movement of religious saints, Uttar Pradesh state’s top elected official, Yogi Adityanath, said in a televised statement. “The situation is now under control, but there is a massive crowd of pilgrims,” Adityanath said, adding that 90 million to 100 million pilgrims had congregated there.Wednesday was a sacred day during the six-week festival, and authorities were expecting a record 100 million devotees to engage in a ritual bath at the confluence of the Ganges, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers.
Nearly 150 million people have already attended, including the likes of Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah and celebrities like Coldplay’s Chris Martin.
INDIA MAHA KUMBH FESTIVAL STAMPEDE PILGRIMS RELIGIOUS GATHERING
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