A tragic stampede at the Mansa Devi Temple in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, has left at least six people dead and dozens injured. The incident occurred on Sunday morning, July 27, 2025, on the stairway leading to the hilltop shrine.
Initial reports suggest that a sudden surge in the crowd, combined with a rumor about a live electric wire, triggered the panic. According to eyewitnesses, someone shouted about a live wire, leading to chaos among the devotees. Haridwar district magistrate Mayur Dixit stated that authorities are investigating the cause and verifying claims, but initial findings indicate there was no electric current at the site. Another report suggests the stampede was triggered after an overhead power line reportedly snapped and fell onto a crowded section of the walkway. However, authorities now say the stampede may have been triggered by a rumour rather than an actual power line failure.
Eyewitness accounts paint a harrowing picture of the event. One devotee from Bihar, who sustained injuries, described the moment the stampede began: "While we were on the stairs, a massive crowd suddenly surged, and in that chaos, we fell. Many people suffered injuries, everyone fell during the stampede". Another eyewitness, in tears, recounted, “We had gone for darshan. The gate was shut due to the crowd. Suddenly, people started running and jumped over each other. They ran over my head and over our children. There were bodies everywhere,”. A devotee from Haryana said that the rumor triggered panic among the devotees and they began to run. ''I fell down in the melee…I managed to somehow get up and ran to safety,'' he said. City police station in-charge Ritesh Saha said the route was densely packed when the electric line gave way, adding that “The sight of the wire falling caused immediate panic, and a desperate scramble to escape led to the stampede".
Senior police officer Pramendra Singh Dobal told IANS news agency that "Upon reaching the site, around 33 people were rescued, out of which 6 have died. Some 29 people were injured from the incident". Injured devotees were rushed to nearby hospitals, while officials scrambled to manage the situation. According to officials, the injured include 20 men, 8 women and 7 children — among them 2 boys and 5 girls.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami expressed grief over the tragedy and stated that relief and rescue operations were underway. "It is extremely distressing to receive news of a stampede on the route to the Mansa Devi Temple in Haridwar,” Dhami posted on X. He has also announced financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured. A magisterial probe has been ordered into the incident, and strict action would be taken against those who spread the rumour.
The Mansa Devi Temple is a revered Hindu shrine dedicated to Goddess Mansa, situated atop Bilwa Parvat on the Shivalik Hills in Haridwar. The temple attracts a large number of pilgrims, especially during weekends and festival days. Haridwar, an ancient city on the banks of the Ganges River, is considered a holy place and draws millions of visitors each year.
This tragic incident highlights the challenges of crowd management at major pilgrimage sites in India. Deadly stampedes and crowd crushes are a recurring problem, especially at religious festivals where large groups congregate. In June, a similar incident at a Hindu festival in Odisha resulted in multiple fatalities and injuries. Authorities are investigating the causes of the stampede, including whether proper crowd management protocols were in place.
