Sheetla Temple tragedy: 10 stampedes at religious events that shook India

On March 31, the last Tuesday of the month of Chaitra, a large crowd of devotees converged on the Sheetla Temple in Bihar's Nalanda district, as they do every week. This time, the gathering turned fatal.

At least eight women were killed and several others injured when severe overcrowding triggered a stampede inside the temple premises. In the chaos, several women were crushed before police and local villagers rushed in to begin rescue operations.

It was the latest in a long and devastating pattern. India's long religious calendar, overcrowded public spaces, poor infrastructure, improper inspections by the governing bodies and chronically inadequate crowd management have made it, if not the top, one of the world's most stampede-prone nations.

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According to the NCRB, 3,074 people died in stampedes between 2000 and 2022 alone, and the numbers don't seem to die out with every passing year. Here are ten incidents from the past decade that made headlines.

1. July 2015: Godavari Pushkaram, Andhra Pradesh

Twenty-seven pilgrims died and 20 were injured at a bathing ghat on the Godavari river in Rajahmundry on the opening day of the Pushkaram festival, on July 14, 2015. Devotees had gathered in enormous numbers for a sacred dip, and the narrow riverbank offered no room to manage the surge.

2. August 2015: Baidyanath Jyotirlinga Temple, Jharkhand

On August 10, 2015, at least eleven people were killed and 50 injured at the Baidyanath Jyotirlinga temple in Deoghar when pilgrims surged forward the moment the shrine's doors opened in the morning. Devotees who had been sleeping in the kilometres-long overnight queue were trampled as the crowd behind them pushed ahead. The incident underscored the particular danger of door-opening surges at popular shrines, where the release of pent-up crowd pressure can turn fatal within seconds.

3. October 2016: Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh

On October 15, 2016, at least 24 people were killed and 20 injured in a stampede on a crowded bridge on the outskirts of Varanasi as devotees crossed to reach a religious ceremony on the banks of the Ganges. Organisers had expected around 3,000 devotees at the ashram of a local Hindu religious leader, but over 70,000 turned up.

4. April 2019: Karuppasamy Temple, Tamil Nadu

On April 21, 2019, seven devotees were killed during the Chitra Pournami festival at the Karuppasamy temple in Muthayampalayam village, Trichy. The stampede was triggered by a ritual called Pidikkaasu, the distribution of coins by the priest before the temple idol, which drew far more worshippers than the narrow temple precinct could handle. As the crowd surged forward to receive the coins, people were crushed underfoot. The incident highlighted how even seemingly routine temple rituals can turn dangerous when crowd capacity is not managed.

5. January 2022: Vaishno Devi Shrine, J&K

The year started off on a tragic note for many in Katra, Jammu and Kashmir as at least 12 people died after a huge crowd of devotees tried to enter the Vaishno Devi shrine on New Year's Eve. The incident highlighted the dangers of unregulated footfall at high-altitude religious sites during peak festive periods. It is said that an argument between people led to a scuffle, which ultimately led to the stampede. Pilgrimage was temporarily suspended but resumed shortly after.

6. March 2023: Beleshwar Mahadev Temple, Indore

On March 30, 2023, thirty-six people died when a slab built over an ancient stepwell, or bawdi, at the Beleshwar Mahadev Jhulelal Temple in Patel Nagar caved in during a havan on Ram Navami. Around 30 to 35 devotees plunged into the muddy water below and were buried under falling debris. A damning detail emerged afterwards: the Indore Municipal Corporation had issued a notice to the temple trust in April 2022 to remove the slab, but the trust had not complied. A magisterial inquiry was ordered.

7. July 2024: Hathras Satsang, Uttar Pradesh

Perhaps the Hathras Satsang stampede is the deadliest on this list. At least 121 people, mostly women, died in a stampede at a prayer meeting organised by self-styled godman Bhole Baba on July 3, 2024. Organisers had sought permission for 80,000 attendees but around 250,000 turned up.

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The reason behind the stampede is still unclear, but reports claim that a narrow exit path and a dust storm as people were leaving the venue contributed to the crush. Authorities later alleged that event organisers tried to destroy evidence.

8. January 2025: Tirupati Temple, Andhra Pradesh

At least six devotees were killed and dozens injured as hundreds jostled for tickets for Vaikunta Dwara Darshanam at the Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirumala on January 8, 2025. One of the wealthiest temples in the country failed to manage the crowd gathered on the auspicious day of Ekadesi. Long queues, insufficient barriers and soaring temperatures proved a deadly combination. A temple board member claimed that such an incident had never occurred in the history of the temple.

9. January 2025: Maha Kumbh, Uttar Pradesh

On January 29, 2025, a pre-dawn stampede at the Sangam during Mauni Amavasya killed at least 30 pilgrims and injured 90 more as millions rushed towards the river for a sacred dip in near-darkness. A Reuters report claimed at least 39 bodies were brought to the morgue after the incident. It was one of the worst tragedies of the year, given the Kumbh's global profile. The Maha Kumbh carries a grim history — in 1954, around 800 people died at the same site, and in 1986, the horror repeated, claiming around 200 lives.

10. February 2025: New Delhi Railway Station

The Maha Kumbh effect was felt far from Prayagraj, as pilgrims rushing to the event from New Delhi got caught in a crush of their own. On February 15, 2025, eighteen lives were lost at New Delhi station as devotees scrambled to board trains to Prayagraj for the ongoing Kumbh Mela. The disaster raised urgent questions about platform crowd management during large religious events.

The pattern across these ten incidents is not coincidental. A study by researchers at IIT-Delhi analysing 137 stampedes worldwide between 1883 and 2017, found that religious gatherings account for 64% of all stampede fatalities and 51% of injuries, more than any other category, including sports, entertainment or political events. The leading triggers, the study found, are narrow passages, overcrowding and rumours that cause panic. India's list above reflects all three with grim consistency.