Lucknow: Soon after a stampede-like situation took place at MahaKumbh, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday said things were under control though there was a lot of pressure as around 3 crore people had already taken the holy dip on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya—the ‘second Shahi Snan’— during the early hours of the day. He also urged devotees to not to give in to misinformation.
Around 10 people are feared dead after a stampede occurred at the fair site on Wednesday when installed barriers broke as thousands of devotees thronged the Triveni Sangam. Adityanath has also urged the devotees to take the holy dip at the nearest ghat at Ganga and not go towards Sangam Nose, where the stampede took place.
Several people suffered injuries. Many families have been separated, according to an India Today TV report. According to reports, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath thrice over the incident. The PM was monitoring the situation, officials said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Union Health Minister JP Nadda also spoke to Adityanath, assuring the Uttar Pradesh CM of all possible help from the Central government.
The injured had been shifted to a makeshift hospital in Sector 2 of Kumbh. Authorities appealed to the devotees to vacate the spot after taking a dip in the holy confluence of the rivers.
Following the stampede, earlier the Akharas (monastic orders) declared that the Amrit Snan had been cancelled. But Akhil Bharatiya Akhada Parishad president Ravindra Puri reportedly said Akharas would go ahead with the snan as planned after crowds reduced.
‘Stampede due to misinformation’
“We have a lot of time and we are in no hurry. We can do snan even at night. In the morning, misinformation was spread to create fear in the minds of people and they succeeded. In the morning, when we talked to everyone we found that the reality was different and a lot of rumours were spread. I want to urge people to not run towards Sangam and take a dip wherever they find Ganga ji,” Puri told India Today.
“I saw people falling over each other to reach the banks to take a dip. Soon, people began falling over and the police got overwhelmed. For hours, we have seen ambulances come and go. I had to run to the Akhara area to save myself,” Ramesh Kumar, an eyewitness, told News 18.
‘Administration was catering to VIPs’
Religious leader Premanand Puri on Wednesday blamed the local administration for the stampede at Mahakumbh 2025, saying that it was busy catering to the VIPs, reported the livemint.
Maha Kumbh kicked off on January 13. It will continue till February 26.
