Over seven killed in stampede at India festival, official says

More than seven people were killed and around 10 injured in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in northern India on Wednesday, said an official, as tens of millions gathered to take a holy dip on the most auspicious day of the six-week Hindu festival.

Drone footage showed millions of devotees, shoulder to shoulder, arriving in the pre-dawn dark at the temporary township in Prayagraj for the holy dip at the confluence of three rivers, the Ganga, Yamuna, and the mythical, invisible Saraswati.

Video and photographs after the stampede showed bodies being taken away on stretchers and people sitting on the ground crying, while others stepped over a carpet of discarded clothes, shoes, backpacks and blankets left by people as they tried to escape the stampede.

A Reuters witness saw several dead bodies as he followed dozens of ambulances rushing towards the river bank where the incident occurred.

"More than seven people have been killed in the stampede and around 10 others injured," said an official who did not want to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Officials said there had been only one stampede which occurred around 1 a.m. local time (1930 GMT). Its cause was unclear.

Witnesses said devotees started falling on each other when there was a huge push near the confluence of the three rivers, where a holy dip is considered particularly sacred.

Reuters