A Accident during the gigantic Hindu pilgrimage Kumbh Mela has caused an unknown number of victims (it is still not clear if there are also dead) a Prayagraj, in the north of India. “We were heading to Sangam (the confluence of the sacred rivers Gange and Yamuna, where the ritual baths take place) and the roads were blocked.
Suddenly the crowd started to push and many people were crushed, “said a witness. Some of the people who were injured in the crowd are in serious condition, according to the first official relationship of the authorities. Witnesses told to the BBC that I have counted at least 12 corpses, While in the last tweet the Reuters talks about several people who were killed.
…..how the world’s largest gathering of humans looks like!!
@ Prayagraj, India during the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025. pic.twitter.com/0Sj6EQ9lx8— Swaminathan P (@swami2005)
January 28, 2025
The celebrations of the Kumbh Mela bring together millions of devotees from the whole country that come to immerse themselves to the confluence of the Sacuri Gange and yamuna rivers. According to the Hindu tradition, these ritual baths allow you to wash away their sins and free themselves from the cycle of rebirth and reincarnations. Scheduled from 13 January to 26 February, the 2025 edition of this mega-stargrinage has been announced as a record.
The authorities have announced all over all 400 million participants (100 million only today) Which would make it the largest gathering of all time. Religious gatherings are regularly the scene of fatal accidents in India, due to the bad management of the crowd and safety deficiencies. Last July, more than 120 people died in the state of Uttar Pradesh in a crowd during a gathering attended by more than 250,000 faithful who came to listen to a famous Hindu preacher.
The crowd occurred in a moment of great influx of devotees, since January 29 is the date of the Amavasya mauni, considered the most propitious moment to immerse yourself in sacred waters. According to Adityanath, between 80 and 100 million pilgrims are currently in Prayagraj. According to the organizers, more than 36 million people immersed themselves in the sacred waters on Wednesday at 10:00 local time (05:30 Italian), bringing to almost 200 million the number of visitors of the Hindu Festival since its start on January 13.
If this estimate is respected, at least 70,000 people per minute will have to enter and leave the water, so that nobody remains without their sacred bathroom.