Over 100 pilgrims have been killed and scores of people injured in a stampede near Sabarimala shrine in Kerala's Idukki district.
The incident took place seven kilometre away from the shrine on 14th Jan after a jeep carrying devotees ran into a resting camp. The stampede broke out after the jeep accident caused panic amongst the devotees.
Over 90 bodies have been recovered so far. They have been taken to Vandiperiyar Hospital in Idukki. Some of the injured have been rushed to Kottayam Medical College (Kerala) and Theni Medical College in Tamil Nadu.
The victims were pilgrims returning after the Makaravilakku ritual. Most of them hailed from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
Over 100 pilgrims were killed and scores of people injured in a stampede near Sabarimala shrine in Kerala's Idukki district.
The incident took place seven kilometres away from the shrine on January after a jeep carrying devotees ran into a resting camp. The stampede broke out after the jeep accident caused panic amongst the devotees.
The injured were rushed to Kottayam Medical College (Kerala) and Theni Medical College in Tamil Nadu.
The victims were pilgrims returning after the Makaravilakku ritual. Most of them hailed from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
Makaravilakku is the most sacred festival in Sabarimala. This marks the holy end of 41 days of prayer and fasting for Ayyappa. Makaravilakku is a weeklong celebration in Sabarimala and thousands of Ayyappa devotees throng the shrine to see the auspicious Makara Jyothi.
The stampede broke out after a jeep carrying devotees ran into a resting camp about seven kilometres away from the shrine. The accident caused panic amongst the devotees who started running helter-skelter.
Rescue operations started and bodies were being identified. Majority of the deceased were from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh as the grassland forest route, known as 'Pulmedu' in the Periyar tiger reserve, is trodden by devotees from these states.
A massive search operation was also launched to find the missing children.
The dead bodies have been taken to Vandiperiyar Hospital in Idukki. Of these, 54 have been identified. Some of the injured were rushed to Kottayam Medical College (Kerala) and Theni Medical College in Tamil Nadu.
Reports suggest that the accident and the consequent stampede occurred in a hilly area, beyond the Sabarimala police protection area. The terrain hence made rescue and relief operations difficult.
The Prime Minister expressed deep shock and sent his condolences to the bereaved families. He also sanctioned an ex-gratia of Rs. 1 lakh for the families of each of the deceased and Rs. 50,000 for those injured.
Defence Minister AK Antony has assured all possible help from the Army in rescue operations.
A similar incident had occurred in 1999, when a stampede at Pampa on way to the hill shrine had killed 50 people on the occasion of Makara Jyothi.
