A tragic stampede during the annual Puri Rath Yatra in Odisha has resulted in the deaths of three devotees and injuries to over 50 others. The incident occurred in the early hours of Sunday, near the Gundicha Temple, about three kilometers from the Jagannath Temple where the Yatra began.
The devotees had gathered to catch a glimpse of Lord Jagannath and his siblings, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra, on their chariots. The incident took place around 4:00 to 4:30 am on Saradhabali. Reports indicate that a vehicle carrying ritual materials entered the already dense crowd, which led some people to fall, triggering the stampede. Eyewitnesses have alleged inadequate police arrangements and mismanagement of the swelling number of pilgrims as contributing factors. In recent years, to avoid the massive daytime crowds, an increasing number of devotees have been arriving at night for darshan. After darshan was temporarily paused for a ritual, devotees surged forward as it resumed, triggering the stampede. The close placement of the chariots further aggravated the situation.
The deceased have been identified as Basanti Sahu, Premakant Mohanty and Pravati Das. Some of the injured were discharged after receiving primary treatment, while others remain hospitalized with serious injuries. Six of the injured are reportedly in critical condition.
Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has expressed his condolences and termed the incident an "unpardonable" act of negligence. The state government has ordered an immediate investigation into the security lapses and has initiated action against those responsible. An administrative probe, headed by development commissioner Anu Garg, has been ordered. The government has also transferred Puri collector Siddharth Shankar Swain and SP Vinit Agarwal. Chanchal Rana has been appointed as the new collector, and Pinak Mishra has replaced Agarwal as SP. Furthermore, the state government has suspended two senior police officers for "dereliction in duty" and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 25 lakh for the families of the deceased.
Political reactions have been strong, with former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik criticizing the current government's "glaring incompetence" in ensuring a peaceful festival. The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee has demanded a time-bound judicial probe into the incident, highlighting that this tragedy follows reports of 500 devotees being injured on Friday during the yatra.
The incident has raised concerns about crowd management during major religious gatherings, especially during the Rath Yatra. A senior Daitapati servitor of the Puri Jagannath Temple has appealed to the administration to make better arrangements to prevent inconvenience to devotees.
