Puri: Thirty devotees injured in stampede-like situation inside Sri Jagannath temple

One Habisyali sustained a severe injury on her leg and is being treated in the district headquarters hospital.

According to sources, a large number of devotees were waiting at Simhadwar, the main entrance to the temple, in the morning when the mishap occurred.

Inside the temple's inner space, known as “Kurmabedha”, while devotees were entering through Sat Pahach (seven steps door) and Ghanti dwar, the two doors to the main temple, there was a stampede-like situation because of heavy rush.

Several devotees fell down and scores of others experienced severe suffocation and fell unconscious with profuse vomiting.

Temple security and police shifted them to an air-conditioned temple office room and provided ORS drinks before escorting them to district headquarters hospital in phases.

Many attributed the reason to poor management of the pilgrim crowd. Though a large number of devotees were already waiting behind the barricades at Simhadwar the volunteers brought thousands of Habisyalis (elderly women devotees) in buses and left them at the temple gate.

When the barricades lifted all tried to enter. The security personnel were unable to provide habisyalis safe passage into the temple.

This apart the ambulance service was inadequate as the injured had to wait lying in helpless condition on temple premises for their turn to be taken to the hospital.

Superintendent of Police K Vishal Singh told media persons that there was no stampede in the temple.

Some devotees, he said, were injured in the rush. Some had vomiting and suffocation.

Most of the devotees were discharged from the hospital. We have deployed fifteen platoons of police force for smooth movement of devotees in the temple.

Five platoons of police forces will be added during Diwali and Kartik purnima, the important festive days, the SP said.