9 dead in stampede at Venkateswara Swamy temple in Andhra Pradesh

At least nine people -- eight women and a boy -- were killed and many others injured at a stampede which occurred at Venkateswara Swamy temple here in Srikakulam district on Saturday.

Andhra Pradesh Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha said the temple, a private one and not under the Endowments Department, usually witnesses a turnout of 1,500 to 2,000 devotees here every Saturday.

The tragedy was worsened by the Ekadasi observance coinciding with 'Karthika Masam', drawing large crowds.

According to the minister, the temple is located at an elevation on the first floor, and when the devotees were climbing, the railing broke, resulting in the people standing at a corner falling on one another.

One of the survivors from Dharmapuram village near Ichchapuram, said the approach to the temple is narrow, with only a single entry and exit point, which led to a buildup of devotees on both sides and resulted in chaos.

At least seven of the dead are in the age group of 35-40.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressing grief over the incident said full-fledged inquiry will be done on the incident.

Addressing a gathering in Sri Sathya Sai district, Naidu blamed the organisers for not informing the police in advance, due to which adequate security measures could not be arranged.

After visiting the patients undergoing treatment at the hospital here, Minister Nara Lokesh told reporters following CM's instructions the kin of each deceased will receive an ex-gratia of Rs 15 lakh, while the injured will get Rs 3 lakh each from the state government.

Srikakulam district superintendent of police (SP) KV Maheshwara Reddy said it is mandatory for temples (or religious institutions) to take permission from police when they are organising events, irrespective of the strength of the turnout.

“It is definitely mandatory under the Public Safety Act. They can ask for any number of people. It is not that only 200 or 2,000 people. Even if 200 people come, they can inform us and we will assess the situation, based on that we will provide the bandobust,” Reddy told PTI.

Incidentally, the police provided security to other temples in the North Andhra district today, but the SP said the owner of this particular temple, Mukunda Panda, failed to inform them.

According to Reddy, Panda built the temple without the requisite permissions and opened it.

Mukunda Panda, a 95-year-old man who built the temple, told the media that he did not expect so many people to turn up at the temple, as he had never witnessed huge crowds before.

Meanwhile, the SP said cases are being registered under culpable homicide charges.

Earlier, Reddy said nine people died in the mishap.

“Nine (deaths). Nine only, (Condition of) one person is a bit serious. He is not dead. One child is there, a 12-year-old child; the remaining (victims) are all female. And it is a private temple. It is not a government temple. It was constructed recently,” said Reddy.

The police official clarified that the incident was a result of a railing collapse near the steps, which led to panic.

The public thought that something was falling and panicked. They fell from a height of about six feet. Since the collapse was from a height of six feet, one person fell on another, and that led to the incident, he added.

“It is purely an accident and due to the owner's negligence. They haven't applied for police bandobust, there were no permissions also.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the incident and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each from PMNRF to the next of kin of those who lost their lives and Rs 2,000 to the injured.

“Pained by the stampede in Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh. My thoughts are with those who have lost their near and dear ones. I pray that the injured recover soon,” he said in a post on X.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah also expressed shock over the incident.

“An individual constructed Venkateswara Swamy temple in Kasibugga. A lot of devotees went there to have darshan on the occasion of auspicious Kartika masam (month). He did not inform the police. Had he informed in advance, police protection would have been provided and controlled the crowd.

It is really painful.. I'm strongly condemning it. Innocent people lost their lives. We will take this incident seriously. Whoever is responsible, they will be taken into custody and a full-pledged inquiry will be conducted,” Naidu said.

The CM alleged that the tragedy took place due to a lack of orderliness and discipline.

A devotee said, “As people jostled, we fell down. The steel grill was also very weak. As the (grill) broke, which was held as a support, and all fell down. Twenty of us came in two autorickshaws. I am an auto driver. I also went for darshanam. I was right there and the boy (who died) was also under those grills.”

A doctor at a state-run hospital in Palasa said nearly 30 people came with injuries and breathlessness. Many people broke their limbs and were given first aid.

Naidu directed officials to ensure better treatment for the injured persons. He also instructed the authorities and local leaders to monitor the relief work at the stampede site.