A tragic incident unfolded at the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in Andhra Pradesh’s Srikakulam district on Saturday, claiming the lives of nine devotees and critically injuring three others. The stampede occurred around 11:45 AM amidst a massive surge of devotees gathered for ‘Ekadashi’, an auspicious day during the Karthika month.
Officials confirmed that seven people died at the scene, while two succumbed to their injuries during treatment at the Palasa community health center. Fifteen others are currently receiving medical attention, with three in critical condition.
According to the police, the chaos erupted as devotees were navigating a narrow staircase leading to the temple’s first floor. The lack of separate entry and exit points, combined with a railing giving way under the immense pressure of the crowd, led to the unfortunate event.
Srikakulam Superintendent of Police, KV Maheswara Reddy, stated that an initial investigation suggests a broken queue management grill triggered the crowd surge. The temple, which typically sees around 1,500 to 2,000 visitors, was overwhelmed with an estimated 15,000 devotees, a turnout far exceeding expectations.
Eyewitness accounts describe a harrowing scene, with many people trapped in narrow passages, struggling for air. Devotees reported a lack of volunteers and security personnel to assist victims amidst the panic.
The deceased have been identified as Rapaka Vijaya (48), Muripinti Neelamma (60), Duvvu Rajeswari (60), Chinni Yosodamma (56), Ch. Lotla Nikhil (13), Eduri Chinnammi, Rupa, Dokkara Ammulamma, and Bora Brunda. The ages of some victims are still being confirmed.
The temple, managed by a private trust, was inaugurated in July and has become a popular local pilgrimage site known as ‘Chinna Tirupati’. The area where the pilgrims had gathered was still under construction.
This incident highlights recurring issues with crowd management and safety preparedness at religious and public gatherings across the country.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressed his condolences, calling the event ‘heartbreaking’ and pointing to the temple management’s failure to notify the police about the expected crowd size, which prevented adequate arrangements.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu also expressed their grief and offered condolences to the bereaved families. Prime Minister Modi announced an ex-gratia of ₹2 lakh for the next of kin of those deceased and ₹2,000 for the injured.
An FIR has been registered, with police citing negligence on the part of the temple management for the lack of prior notification and permission for the large gathering. State IT Minister Nara Lokesh announced further ex-gratia payments to the affected families.