Survivors blame ‘mismanagement’, sanctuary council refutes accusation

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Pilgrims walk to Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Katra. Credit: PTI Photo

Katra – A sudden rush of worshipers to Vaishno Devi shrine here to mark the start of the New Year sparked the stampede that resulted in the deaths of 12 people, some of the survivors said, blaming the “mismanagement” of the tragedy.

The board of directors of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, however, denied the accusation, saying all necessary arrangements had been made given the expected rush, while the director general of the police of Jammu and Kashmir (DGP ), Dilbag Singh, blamed the unfortunate incident on a minor altercation.

“Nothing but mismanagement was the cause of this tragic accident. They were aware of the possible rush but let people in unhindered,” said a pilgrim from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh in waiting outside a mortuary to identify a corpse.

The man, who did not wish to be named, said the situation could have been avoided if the authorities concerned had handled the pilgrimage better.

“A similar situation had occurred a few minutes earlier, but luckily no one was injured and the situation was brought under control. We were part of a group of 10 worshipers who were all neighbors. A strong stampede triggered the stampede then. that people were coming in and going out, and everyone was in hurry, ”he said.

A lot of people were resting on the ground, instead of coming in, and this caused more haste to the bhawan, he added.

Another man, who lost his friend, Arun Pratab Singh (30), said they were from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh. The bhawan was overcrowded, he added.

“I had visited the shrine about 10 years ago, but was surprised by the high turnout this time. After the tragedy, we found ourselves helpless and received no help until 6 a.m. “, he asserted.

Rani Devi from Muzaffarpur in Bihar said they were lucky to have escaped death.

“I saw a lot of people dead on the ground and I was heartbroken,” she said, attributing this to the “uncontrolled rush” of pilgrims to the bhawan.

Aditya Sharma, another worshiper, said some people sleeping on the floor were run over during the stampede.

As a result of the incident, many pilgrims were seen leaving Katra, the shrine’s base camp, without bowing.

“We are from Pathankot. We returned from bhawan without ‘darshan’ because of the stampede,” said Rekha, who was accompanied by five other family members, including three children.

Prem Singh, from Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh, said there was a complete mess as neither the number of pilgrims was limited nor the COVID-19 guidelines in place.

“It was a situation similar to free admission. A lot of people did not have mandatory masks,” he said, claiming that police personnel on duty at the x-ray checkpoint had traveled to the strong rush and warned people of the possibility of such an accident.

However, many people were seen in long queues to visit the shrine as the pilgrimage proceeded smoothly.

“We have been waiting for five hours but nothing is moving,” said Navdeep from Karnal in Haryana.

The director general of the board of directors of the Ramesh Kumar shrine, who was among the first to attend to take stock of the situation and visit the wounded at Narayana hospital, could not be contacted. to comment.

Another official on the board, who wished not to be named, said adequate arrangements, including security, were in place due to the expected influx of pilgrims.

The DGP said preliminary information from the scene suggests there was an altercation between some young boys, and within seconds there was a stampede situation.

“The police and civil administration officials reacted quickly, and order in the crowd was immediately restored, but by then the damage was done,” he told PTI .

Top BJP leader and former lawmaker Devender Singh Rana, who interacted with pilgrims here to provide an update, said the incident was the first of its kind to occur at the shrine.

“This is a tragic incident and a sad moment for all of us. The entire administration is working to ensure that the bodies of the deceased are returned to their families and that the injured receive adequate treatment,” a- he declared.

Rana said Prime Minister Narendra Modi also took note of the incident and that the administration led by the lieutenant governor was doing its best.

“This is not the time for allegations or counter-allegations. It is a tragedy that has happened and no one should be playing politics about it,” he added.

At least 12 people died and more than a dozen were injured in the stampede that occurred around 2:30 a.m. near gate number three outside the shrine of the shrine on top of the Trikuta Hills, about 50 km from Jammu.

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