Stampede-Like Situation At Mahakaleshwar Nath Chandeshwar Mandir In Ujjain, Several Injured

Ujjain: Several people were reportedly injured after a stampede-like situation among the devotees at Mahakaleshwar Nath Chandeshwar Mandir in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain. According to reports, on the occasion of Sawan Somvar, a massive crowd gathered in Ujjain.

Ppanic reportedly broke out among devotees after rumours of an electric current spread through the crowd. Due to a massive crowd barricased were broken.

After receiving information, senior official reached the spot. Authorities have launched a rescue and relief operation. The injured were shifted to a nearby hospital.

One of the injured, Sagar, said he was waiting in the queue for several hours before the incident occurred. "I was in the queue at Mahakal Mandir for the darshan. After seven to eight hours, I reached Harsiddhi Chauraha. We stood there for two hours. The crowd was swelling and since it was time for the aarti, we were stopped there. Suddenly, the barricades were opened and a stampede broke out," he said, as quoted by ANI. He further stated that the collapse of the barricades left him trapped and injured.

"The tent fell, and all the barricades fell too. Both of my legs were caught under the barricade. One of my legs is fractured. The arrangements were really poor at the temple. Nobody helped me. Only one man came and helped me; he carried me to a health camp, from where I was taken away in an ambulance," he added.

On Nag Panchami, which falls on a Monday during the auspicious Shravan month this year, the Nagchandreshwar Temple at the Mahakaleshwar shrine was opened for devotees. The temple is accessible to the public only once a year for 24 hours on Nag Panchami, drawing a large number of devotees seeking Lord Nagchandreshwar’s blessings.

Bihar Temple Stampede:

It is the second such incident in a day. Earlier on Monday, at least seven people died in a stampede-like incident at Ashokdham Temple in Bihar's Lakhisarai. Several people also sustained injuries. Among the deceased, most of them were reportedly women. The death toll is likely to increase as the condition of some of the injured is critical. The incident took place as a large number of devotees thronged the temple to seek blessing amid the ongoing holy month of Sawan.

The incident occurred on the route leading from Ashokdham station to the temple. A massive crowd gathered at Lakhisarai station early Monday morning, with the situation turning chaotic after two trains arrived and overcrowding reportedly caused a barricade to collapse.

Some reports even claimed that thousands of people were standing in a queue on Monday morning when rumours spread that an electric current had passed through a fallen pole. The rumour triggered panic among the devotees, who started running in different directions. The barricading broke, causing people to fall on top of one another.

However, authorities have launched a probe to find out the exact cause of the incident.

Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary expressed grief over the deaths of devotees in the stampede and announced Rs 4 lakh ex gratia to the kin of each deceased.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also expressed grief over the tragedy.