NALANDA, India (Diya TV) — A tragic stampede at the Sheetla Mata Temple in Bihar’s Nalanda district left several devotees dead and many others injured on Tuesday, officials and witnesses said. The incident occurred during a large religious gathering on the last Tuesday of the Chaitra month, when thousands had arrived for darshan.
The temple, located in Maghra village about five kilometers from Bihar Sharif, saw an unusually large crowd due to the coincidence of a Tuesday and the festival of Mahavir Jayanti. Devotees from nearby areas, including Patna, gathered in huge numbers, creating overcrowded conditions.
Witnesses said the situation quickly turned chaotic. A devotee recounted how the crowd surged suddenly, leading to people falling and getting trampled. “There was a massive crowd. Four of us had come from Patna. We got separated from each other. People were trampled,” she told ANI.
Another devotee, Mamata Devi, blamed poor arrangements for the tragedy. She said the temple often gets crowded on Tuesdays, but the situation spiraled out of control this time. “A stampede broke out, and people died. It happened due to mismanagement. An ambulance has reached here, but the administration is not present,” she said.
Several eyewitnesses pointed to inadequate crowd control as a key factor behind the stampede. Devotees said many people ignored queues and rushed forward to get darshan first, which increased pressure on the barricades.
A resident, Lalit Kumar, said the barricades collapsed under the weight of the crowd. “It is Mahavir Jayanti and Tuesday today, so there was a huge crowd. The barricades broke, and suddenly a stampede occurred,” he said. He also claimed that police presence at the site was insufficient. Another witness echoed similar concerns. He said people rushed forward without order, causing panic and confusion. “Nobody wanted to stay in the queue. Everyone wanted to go ahead. That caused the stampede,” he said.
Senior officials rushed to the site soon after the incident. Emergency teams began rescue operations and shifted the injured to nearby hospitals. Authorities also arranged ambulances and medical aid to handle the situation. Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary expressed grief over the incident. In a statement posted on X, he called the tragedy heartbreaking. He said the government is providing all possible support to affected families and ensuring proper treatment for the injured.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar also expressed deep sorrow. He announced financial assistance for the victims’ families. According to an official statement, the government will provide Rs 6 lakh to the next of kin of each deceased person. This amount includes Rs 4 lakh from the Disaster Management Department and Rs 2 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. The chief minister directed senior officials to oversee relief and rescue operations. He also instructed authorities to ensure proper medical care for the injured and wished them a speedy recovery.
The incident has raised serious concerns about crowd management at major religious sites, especially during festivals and special worship days. Large gatherings at temples often require strict planning, clear entry and exit points, and proper security deployment.
Experts say that a lack of coordination and poor infrastructure can quickly turn such gatherings dangerous. In this case, eyewitness accounts suggest that both inadequate barricading and weak crowd control measures contributed to the disaster. Local authorities have not yet released an official count of casualties. However, reports indicate multiple deaths and several injuries. Officials are expected to conduct an inquiry to determine the exact cause of the stampede and identify lapses.
The tragedy has left the local community in shock. Families of the victims are grieving the sudden loss of their loved ones. Devotees who had gathered for prayer instead witnessed chaos and panic.
Leaders and citizens alike have called for better safety measures at religious events. They stressed the need to prevent such incidents in the future through improved planning and stricter enforcement of crowd control rules.
