Nearly 40 bodies were brought to a hospital morgue following a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in northern India on Wednesday, police sources said, as millions gathered for a sacred river bath on the most auspicious day of the six-week festival.
Bodies were still arriving at Moti Lal Nehru Medical College hospital more than 12 hours after the tragedy. The government has yet to confirm the official death toll.
“More bodies are coming in. We have nearly 40 here. We are transferring them to families one by one,” a police source told Reuters.
A senior police officer, Vaibhav Krishna, said authorities were prioritizing crowd control and could not immediately confirm casualty numbers.
The stampede occurred as massive crowds surged toward the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati rivers. Devotees believe immersion in these waters absolves sins and ensures salvation.
Eyewitnesses reported a sudden push in the dense crowd, with some attributing the crush to closed access routes. Others described a frantic rush as people fell over each other.
“There was commotion—everyone started pushing, pulling, climbing over one another. My mother collapsed, then my sister-in-law. People ran over them,” said Jagwanti Devi, 40, who sat in an ambulance with the bodies of her relatives.
Authorities said some victims suffered heart attacks or had pre-existing health conditions. “People came in with fractures, broken bones. Some collapsed on the spot and were brought in dead,” said an official at SRN Hospital, who declined to be named.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences, stating that local officials were assisting victims. However, he did not specify the number of casualties.
Yogi Adityanath, chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, said the stampede began when devotees attempted to jump barricades between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. Wednesday (1930-2030 GMT Tuesday).
Opposition leaders blamed the tragedy on “mismanagement” and “VIP culture,” criticizing preferential treatment for high-profile attendees.
“VIP culture should be curbed, and the government must ensure better arrangements for common devotees,” Congress Party leader Rahul Gandhi said on X.
By Tuesday, nearly 200 million people had attended the 2025 festival. Officials estimated that 50 million had taken a holy dip by Wednesday afternoon.
Authorities had anticipated a record 100 million visitors on Wednesday, deploying additional security, medical personnel, and AI-based crowd management technology.
A Rapid Action Force (RAF) unit was called in to restore order. Officials said rescue operations were ongoing.
Social media posts showed heavy traffic congestion on roads leading into Prayagraj, stranding many travelers.
“I planned this trip for over a year, but I’ve been stuck in traffic for 19 hours,” American travel blogger Drew Binsky said on Instagram.
The Kumbh Mela, the world’s largest religious gathering, is held every 12 years. A similar stampede during the 2013 festival killed at least 36 pilgrims, mostly women.
