The injured were also brought to the hospital, where the condition of some of them is stated to be critical. Indian news channel NDTV reported that 25 of the deceased were women. Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu, who had taken the holy dip along with his family today, has set up a control room and monitoring the situation.
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“Twenty-seven people have now been confirmed dead in the stampede and another 29 are injured“, Parakala Prabhakar, a spokesman for Andhra Pradesh’s Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, told the media. Crowds were also diverted from overcrowded ghats. Home Minister More details are yet to come.
The bodies of the victims were shifted to the Rajahmundry government hospital.
The stampede occurred in Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh state as tens of thousands of people pushed forward to bathe in the Godavari River during the Pushkaralu festival, said Arun Kumar, a state administrator.
Over the call, the user can get real-time information on Pushkar ghats, temples, hotels, road and rail network and other emergency details.
The mass pilgrimage is compared often to the Kumbh mela in the North because devotees take a dip in rivers considered holy. In this kind of situation, if a small portion of the crowd loses balance, it would lead to a domino effect.
Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao took the holy dip at Dharmapuri in Karimnagar district, kicking off the event in the state.
A few pilgrims said ambulances took time to reach the site because the roads were overcrowded with people. “Request people not to panic and head to other ghats to avoid overcrowding at a single ghat”. Naidu later vistied the victims undergoing treatment.
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“Gandhi has expressed shock at unfortunate incident of lives being lost in a stampede at Godavari Maha Pushkaram in Andhra Pradesh“.
