Tragedy in Tirupati: Six dead and chaos in pilgrim rush!

In Tirupati, India, a tragic stampede has claimed the lives of at least six pilgrims, including five women. Devotees waited in long queues to receive tokens for prayers to Lord Venkateshwara Swamy. These tokens were supposed to be distributed at 5 a.m. on Thursday, but several thousand people had already gathered the night before.

The accident occurred when a gate was opened to help a woman who had become unwell. The crowd reacted uneasily, which led to an advance by the pilgrims. Eyewitnesses reported inadequate security measures, with authorities taking over 15 minutes to control the crowd. At least 40 people were injured.

Authorities response and emergency response

The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) is managing the temple operations and 3,000 police personnel and 1,550 TTD personnel have been deployed for security arrangements. Videos showed police officers applying CPR to the injured pilgrims before they were taken into ambulances. Local residents and police also provided immediate assistance.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed regret over the stampede and expressed condolences to the victims. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu gave instructions that senior officials visit the temple and take measures for better treatment of the injured. An investigation into the incident will also be announced to report on security measures and crowd management The New Indian Express reported.

The identities of the deceased were confirmed to include Munireddy (25), Thimmakka (50), Ganesh (40), Sarasamma (27), Alagarani (42) and Venkata Lakshmi (53). On Thursday, nearly 32 injured worshipers were discharged from the SVR Ruia Government General Hospital after treatment. District Collector S Venkateswar confirmed that post-mortems of the victims have been completed and arrangements for their repatriation to their native places are in progress.

The TTD had already made arrangements for over 700,000 pilgrims for the Vaikuntha Dwara darshan from January 10 to 19, including setting up eight centers with a total of 90 token issuance counters. All privileged darshans have been canceled to accommodate more ordinary devotees.