At least 8 people are feared dead and more than 12 are reported to be injured after a stampede broke out at the famous Sheetla Mata Temple in Bihar‘s Nalanda district on Tuesday, March 31.
What triggered the stampede at Sheetla Mata Mandir in Bihar’s Nalanda?
This is the last Tuesday of the month of Chaitraw which is why a large number of devotees, mostly women, had gathered at the temple for darshan and prayers. Every Tuesday, the temple sees a heavy footfall, but this time the situation turned tragic due to sudden stampede.
‘Total chaos, no police present,’ say eyewitnesses
Lalit Kumar, a local resident, told news agency ANI that the crowd was unusually large as it was Mahavir Jayanti as well as a Tuesday. He explained that the barricades gave way, triggering chaos and a sudden stampede. According to him, people were trampled in the rush, leading to deaths. He also claimed that there was no police presence at the spot.
Reena Rai, another devotee, said they were told that several people had fainted while others were injured, and there were also reports of deaths. She said the situation worsened because many people tried to bypass the queue to get darshan first, especially as it was the last Tuesday of the Chaitra period. She blamed poor management for the incident.
Senior district officials, including the SDPO, rushed to the spot soon after receiving information about the incident. The injured have been shifted to nearby hospital for treatment.
The exact cause of the stampede is not yet clear, though locals have blamed poor crowd management and inadequate security arrangements by the administration.
Further details are awaited as police and district administration continue to investigate the matter.