Haridwar, November 8
Sixteen persons —14 women and two men — were killed in a stampede today during a religious ceremony attended by tens of thousands of devotees near the famous Har-Ki-Pauri on the banks of the Ganga here. Police sources said nearly 2 lakh people from home and abroad had gathered for the ceremony, considered to be the biggest after the Kumbh Mela.
At least 50 persons were also injured in the stampede that broke out when people tried to enter the 'yajnashala' (place of sacred fire ceremony) at Chandidweep Ghat for the birth centenary celebrations of Shri Ram Sharma, the founder of Shanti Kunj Ashram. The saint-scholar-philosopher was also the founding father of 'Akhil Vishwa Gayatri Pariwar', which has a
huge following.
Eyewitnesses said the stampede occurred around 11 am in the Laljiwala area adjacent to Neeldhara, just 500 m from Har-Ki-Pauri after completion of a yajna ritual. Devotees were climbing stairs to cross a mini bridge ahead of the venue for the religious ceremony 'Gayatri Mahayagya', a survivor said.
While tens of thousands of devotees were jostling with each other to proceed to the 'yajnashala' at the ashram to make offerings, some people tripped while those behind continued to push forward. The situation soon went out of control and people ran helter-skelter, many women, children and the elderly falling to the ground.
Some of the injured men and women limped as they tried to walk while others were taken away on stretchers. Ambulances, with sirens screaming, reached the scene and rushed the injured to a makeshift 10-bed hospital that the organisers had set up to deal with emergency situations. The condition of at least 10 persons was stated to be critical.
Chaos reigned supreme in the area in the absence of police force as Shanti Kunj volunteers were managing the function and services of the police were not utilised. Consequently, no immediate help was available from the district administration. Haridwar District Magistrate D Senthyl Pendiyan and SSP Pushkar Seylal reached the site an hour after the
incident.
Police officials blamed the ashram authorities for not involving the police and district administration in the management of the ceremony where lakhs of people had gathered during the past few days.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal was also holding 'yajna' at the ashram when the stampede broke out.
Today's stampede is the second within 19 months at Haridwar. In the last stampede on April 14 last year, seven people were killed during the Mahakumbh Mela.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister BC Khanduri, who had himself performed rituals at the 'yajnashala' a day ago, visited the stampede site and ordered a judicial magisterial probe into the incident. He also announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the kin of each of the victims and free treatment for the injured, who are being treated at the district hospital and at makeshift medical centres of Shanti Kunj. Shanti Kunj Ashram also announced a compensation of an identical amount.
District authorities ordered the organisers to call off the four-day event that was due to end on Thursday when a large number of people are expected to take a dip in the Ganga to mark ‘Kartik Poornima’. The organisers agreed to end the celebrations tomorrow after a prayer meeting but the yajna -- the main function of the ongoing centenary festival - was cancelled today itself.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has expressed grief over the stampede tragedy and sanctioned financial assistance to the families of those killed and injured. Families of those killed will get Rs 1 lakh each and those seriously injured will get Rs 50,000 each, a release from the PMO said.
BJP president Nitin Gadkari also visited the stampede site and met some of the injured. Governor Margaret Alva also expressed grief over the incident. Meanwhile, the Shanti Kunj ashram has accepted moral responsibility for the tragic incident.
“We sypmathise with the deceased families and are shocked as we didn’t envisage such a tragedy could occur,” said head Pranav
Pandya.
