The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : 6 killed in Kanakadurga temple stampede

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jan 04, 2008
ePaper

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

6 killed in Kanakadurga temple stampede

Staff Reporter

The dead included five women and an eight-year-old boy
Chief Minister orders immediate sacking of the entire Trust Board

VIJAYAWADA: A stampede on Indrakeeladri, the abode of famous Kanakadurga temple, in the early hours of Thursday left six persons dead and about 12 injured. The dead included five women and an eight-year-old boy.

The stampede took place on the ghat road leading to the temple, which was thronged by an unprecedented rush of devotees observing ‘Bhavani deeksha’ for 41 days. The ‘deeksha’ ended on Thursday at the end of a five-day period of relinquishment.

The tragedy occurred at around 4.30 a.m. when over one lakh pilgrims competed with each other to reach the temple through the narrow ghat road. With security arrangements being distinctly poor and the barricading system far from satisfactory, a scuffle took place near the ‘Om’ circle, which soon degenerated into a stampede.

Special Correspondent from Hyderabad adds: Taking serious note of the tragedy, Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, ordered immediate sacking of the entire Trust Board of the Kanakadurga temple headed by P. Narayan Reddy. Expressing his ire at the shoddy handling of the crowd, Dr. Reddy said the temple committee should have made more effective and foolproof arrangements for the darshan.

The Government constituted a three-member committee comprising I. V. Subba Rao, Principal Secretary, Revenue (Endowments), P. Sundar Kumar, Commissioner of Endowments, and S. Suresh Kumar, Joint Collector of Krishna district to inquire into the stampede and pin responsibility. It also announced ex gratia of Rs. 1 lakh each for families of the dead and Rs.10,000 each for the injured.

Endowments Minister J. Ratnakar Rao told The Hindu before leaving for Vijayawada, that the committee would also recommend steps to prevent such incidents in all temples.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh