okebet Mahakumbh 2025: Stampedes, Road Accidents And Alleged Mismanagement Raise Concerns

Rush at NDLS remains despite the stampede on Saturday night| Photo: Tribhuvan Tiwari for Outlook India Rush at NDLS remains despite the stampede on Saturday night| Photo: Tribhuvan Tiwari for Outlook India

The Maha Kumbh Mela, which began on January 13, 2025okebet, has been marred by multiple incidents of stampedes and traffic accidents, resulting in significant loss of life and raising concerns about crowd and traffic management.

Three stampedes have allegedly been reported, with one incident receiving little attention. However, the stampede at New Delhi Railway Station on Saturday sent shockwaves across the nation, with the death toll reportedly exceeding 18 people. The actual number of fatalities remains disputed, with eyewitness accounts and ground reports contradicting official figures.

As per initial reports, the stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station occurred due to the rush caused by the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025. As per Delhi Police, an announcement regarding the trains to Prayagraj – Prayagraj Express and Prayagraj Special - caused confusion among passengers due to their similar names.

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READ | Second Stampede Linked To Kumbh Mela, This Time In The Heart Of Delhi

Maha Kumbh 2025 And The Accidents Surrounding It

On January 29, 2025, a massive stampede took place at the Kumbh mela ahead of Amrit Snan. As per Uttar Pradesh Police, at least 30 people were killed and 60 others were injured due to the crowd crush.

However, independent reports have shared that a total of 40 people had died. As per reports by Reuters and Dainik Bhaskar, 40 bodies were counted at the local hospital's morgue, with anonymous police sources confirming the number.

Despite these records, the official death toll continues to stand at 30. Hours after this stampede, another crowd crush reportedly claimed seven lives, including a child. An exclusive report by India Today's Lallantop revealed that the stampede occurred hours after the incident at Sangam Nose.

As per this report, the second stampede was not spoken about in order to avoid spreading panic among the devotees present at the mela. While the stampede at Sangam Nose occurred at 1:33 AM, the one at Jhusi occurred at 5:55 AM. Despite the records, the “second” stampede never made the headlines.

The stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station technically marks the third stampede related to the Kumbh 2025. While the reason for the crowd crush is under investigation, preliminary reports have stated the rush was likely due to a wrong announcement regarding the departure of Prayagraj Express.

Apart from the stampede at NDLS, around 10 devotees were killed in a car-bus crash on the Prayagraj highway on Saturday night. The devotees hailed from Chhattisgarh and were headed to the Kumbh Mela.

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A few days before this, nine devotees from Madhya Pradesh were killed in a crash while returning from the mela. The large influx of devotees heading to Uttar Pradesh along with heavy traffic on the highways to Prayagraj has caused several accidents.

Before And After Stampede – Two Different Experiences At The Kumbh

Vani, 26, who visited the Kumbh days before the January 29 stampede,peso99 slots tells Outlook India that there was “absolutely nothing” when it comes police presence or management on site. She added that the situation was very tough due to the lack of police and security presence.

Telling us about her experience, Vani added that on the drive down to Allahabad, they had to face many diversions due to the amount of traffic while VIP cars were let through with ease.

After reaching the mela, she added that a major problem was that none of the officers on duty seemed to know their way around the site.

As per the UP government, a total of 22,953 officers for the fairgrounds, 6,887 officers in Prayagraj, 7,771 officers for the Government Railway Police (GRP) were deployed for the Maha Kumbh mela 2025.

But it seemed that none of these officers were given the training to deal with the crowd and manage it.

READ | From Kumbh To Hathras: Stampede Disasters In Recent Years

"Policemen from across UP were called in but they were so unfamiliar with the place. We were unable to reach our car and we asked about 20 police officers for the way to the parking, but none of them knew the way, which made us think that they have not been trained for the Maha Kumbh" she tells us, adding that the only time they saw security at mela was when UP CM Yogi Adityanath came to visit.

The Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 anticipated over 40 crore devotees to visit the site over the next month. However, as the Kumbh nears its end, the number of devotees is expected to jump to 50 crore, if not more.

She added that the facilities were not available for the common people. Amid the poor state of changing rooms to no tents for devotees, First Aid for devotees was also not centrally available, with stores and tents found at the peripheries of the mela.

Anagha, 24, who visited after the stampede saw a very different side to the Kumbh Mela. The stampede of January 29, 2025, seemed to have made ripple effect across the site and the devotees. Visiting at the same time as Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she tells us that while boats were not available due to security measures, her journey at the Kumbh was a pleasant one.

When it comes to security presence, Anagha recalls officials being present to guide devotees through the mela and manage the crowd. Police presence, vans and other security officials were presented at various junctions across the mela.

With signage available to guide the devotees in the mela to first aid, food and water made available throughout, for Anagha, the Kumbh was an amazing experience.

She also believes that due to the stampede on January 29okebet, many of the devotees were careful about the conduct and crowd management. Millions of people at the Kumbh Mela were aware of the horrific incident and made sure there such an incident took place again.