Andhra temple stampede survivors recall horror: ‘Barricades couldn’t withstand pressure'

FOr 45-year-old K Ravi Naidu from Palasa in Srikakulam territorial dominion of Andhra Pradesh, the widening of 15,000 devotees was “totally unexpected” at the Sri Venkateshwara Swamy temple, where a stampede on sat forenoon claimed the lives of ix and left several others injured.“There has hardly been any crowd initially. Even on the festive days, the footfall was never more than 400-500 every day,” he said. When Naidu made his way to the temple in Kasibugga for his usual visit, the Palasa resident was “shocked to see the turnout of devotees”.“I had a quick darshan in the morning itself, but by the time I came out, there were serpentine queues at the entrance,” he said, adding that within minutes, there was jostling of crowds leading to the stampede.Another witness pointed out that the stampede broke out in the women’s queue when devotees began jostling for space. “Barricades meant to control the movement could not withstand the pressure and collapsed. In the resulting confusion, narrow passageways turned deadly as thousands tried to push their way out. The barricades set up to regulate movement gave way under pressure, leading to the stampede,” he said on condition of anonymity.The witness also noted he did not see a single police constable to control the crowd, nor was there any private guard of the temple. “It was all chaos,” he said.R Meena, who went to the temple along with her six-year-old son, similarly said there were no guards or police to manage the crowd. “People were pushing and jostling. I managed to come out of the queue with great difficulty without having the darshan,” she said.Cherukupalli resident G Swathi recalled how she was gasping for breath after she found herself in the midst of the chaos. “...It was a horrific scene outside with several women lying unconscious. There were no volunteers or security personnel to come to the rescue of the victims,” she said.Naidu attributed Saturday’s surge in the crowd to social media. “Several local digital channels and even popular electronic media channels have done stories on this temple, built by a private person, creating some kind of enthusiasm among the people,” he said, adding that the temple is described as “Chinna Tirumala”.Naidu was referring to the social media chatter surrounding a two-year-old report carried by a vernacular TV channel, which stated that Srikakulam resident Hari Mukund Panda constructed the temple in his 12 acres of land on the lines of the Lord Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirupati, after failing to offer prayers at the renowned place of worship.“Like me, thousands of devotees do not get the darshan of Tirumala deity. So, I thought I would provide such a facility to the devotees here,” Panda was quoted as saying in the report.On Saturday, however, Panda said he was crestfallen after nine people lost their lives in the stampede. “What can I do? I never expected that there would be so much crowd. We did not make any special arrangements for Ekadasi festival and hence, I did not inform the police authorities,” the 80-year-old said, adding that he thought there would be around 2,000 devotees and even made arrangements for distribution of prasadam for a small crowd.Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu expressed deep sorrow over the stampede. Speaking at an official event in Sri Sathya Sai district, Naidu said, “It is extremely painful that innocent people lost their lives in the stampede. I pay my condolences to the bereaved families,”Naidu lamented the lack of official intimation for the event to the police or local authorities. “Had they informed us, we would have provided police protection and controlled the crowd. Because of this lack of coordination, nine people lost their lives and five were injured,” he said, adding that a full-fledged inquiry will be conducted, and strict action will be taken against those responsible.Deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan also expressed profound grief over the incident. Calling the deaths “deeply distressing,” he said the government would provide all necessary assistance to the victims’ families. He also directed officials to ensure proper queue management, adequate police deployment, and medical camps at temples with heavy footfall.State RTGS minister Nara Lokesh, rushed to the mishap site and is reportedly coordinating the relief effort, said officials, adding that state agriculture minister K Atchannaidu and local MLA Sirisha also assisted injured people at the accident site.Meanwhile, a political row erupted over the incident, with the Opposition blaming the ruling NDA for the stampede.Former minister and YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) leader Dharmana Prasada Rao, a resident of Srikakulam, said the incident was a direct consequence of the government’s negligence. “Despite the sanctity and heavy footfall associated with Karthika Masam Ekadashi, the government failed to deploy adequate police and crowd management systems, leading to the loss of nine lives and injuries to several devotees,” he said.Criticising the government for trying to wash its hands off the tragedy by claiming that the temple does not fall under the state endowments department, Dharmana said such arguments are “shameful and insensitive”. He called on the government to announce ex gratia of ₹25 lakh each to the the deceased kin and financial support to the injured.A control room has been set up in the Collectorate to navigate the relief effort, officials said.Meanwhile, a political row erupted over the incident, with the Opposition blaming the ruling National Democratic Alliance for the stampede.Former minister and YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) leader Dharmana Prasada Rao, a resident of Srikakulam, said the incident was a direct consequence of the government’s negligence and failure to ensure basic public safety measures during major religious occasions.“Despite the sanctity and heavy footfall associated with Karthika Masam Ekadashi, the government failed to deploy adequate police and crowd management systems, leading to the loss of nine lives and injuries to several devotees,” he said.Criticising the government for trying to wash its hands off the tragedy by claiming that the temple does not fall under the state endowments department, Dharmana said such arguments are “shameful and insensitive”.Demanding immediate accountability, he called on the government to announce ex gratia of ₹25 lakh each to the families of the deceased and financial support to the injured.