At least six people died and several others were injured following a stampede at the Mansa Devi temple in the northern Indian city of Haridwar, according to local news reports.
The stampede occurred at the staircase leading to the temple and the injured are being rushed to hospital, Indian news agency ANI reported.
“Upon reaching the site, around 33 people were rescued, out of which 6 have died. The injured have been admitted to the hospital,” senior police officer Pramendra Singh Dobal told India’s IANS news agency.
Some 29 people were injured from the incident, according to Mr Dobal.
Someone in the crowd shouted about an electric current on the pathway around 9am, according to reports.
“Since the path is narrow and meant only for foot traffic, confusion and panic spread instantly,” local priest Ujjwal Pandit told AP.
“A wall along the path is also suspected to have worsened the crowd bottleneck,” he said.
The temple town receives a large influx of pilgrims between July and August every year, especially at the Manasa Devi temple, with local reports suggesting there was an overwhelming crowd this year.
The incident reportedly occurred after a high-voltage electric wire fell on a temple path, triggering panic among devotees.
“At around 9 am, we received information about a stampede on the pedestrian road towards Mansa Devi Temple in Haridwar,” the temple town’s district magistrate Mayur Dixit told PTI news agency.
The state’s chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami shared on X that relief and rescue operations are being “closely monitored”.
“It is extremely distressing to receive news of a stampede on the route to the Mansa Devi Temple in Haridwar,” the chief minister said in a post on X.
“Local police, and other rescue teams have reached the site and are engaged in relief and rescue operations,” Mr Dhami said.
This is the latest in a string of stampedes at Hindu religious gatherings in India.
Last month, at least three people were killed and nearly 50 injured in a stampede after a crowd went out of control at a religious gathering in the eastern Indian city of Puri.
More than 600 people required medical assistance as they gathered for a temple chariot festival amid intense heat.
In February, 79 Hindu pilgrims died in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in India’s Prayagraj, a toll far exceeding the official numbers, according to a local news investigation.
Pilgrims attempting to board a train to the same event at a New Delhi railway station were also caught in a stampede that killed over a dozen people.
In yet another incident in May, eleven people, including two children, who had come for a victory parade of the Indian Premier League (IPL) team Royal Challengers Bengaluru died in a stampede.
