From Hathras to Tirupati… Why do stampedes often happen during religious programs?

New Delhi : The year 2025 started with a stampede at a religious place. The stampede occurred on the evening of January 8 in the temple town of Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh. Six people lost their lives and more than 30 were injured in this tragic incident. The incident occurred during the issuance of Vaikunthdwar Sarvadarshan tokens. At around 8 pm, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) officials had started distributing tokens at several centres, including Vishnu Nivasam, Srinivasam and Padmavathi Park. The situation went out of control when the gate was closed to take a sick devotee out of the queue. Were opened. Many devotees who were in the queue since morning moved forward in large numbers. In the absence of effective crowd management, the crowd led to stampedes at two places. TTD had announced the distribution of 1.2 lakh tokens for Vaikunthdwar Darshan to be held on January 10 (Ekadashi). The tokens were to be issued through 94 counters at nine centres, but the sudden gathering of a large number of people affected the process.

Hathras stampede in 2024

On July 2, 2024, 121 people were killed in a stampede during a religious event in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh. These included mostly women and children. More than 2,000 people have died in stampedes at religious places and festivals across India in the past 20 years. The reality is that there are hardly any reports of legal settlements in any of these tragedies.

In Hathras, police registered a case against the organizers of the congregation, accusing them of hiding evidence and violating the conditions. In this, 2.5 lakh people gathered at a venue in which only 80,000 people were allowed.

However, self-styled godman ‘Bhole Baba’ alias Narayan Sarkar Hari – whom the crowd had gathered to listen to – was not named in the FIR. Although his/her name is in the complaint. The stampede took place on July 2 at 3.30 pm in Phulrai village. At that time the preacher was leaving the venue. Some people say that people slipped in the mud while running behind Bhole Baba’s car.

So much crowding and inadequate exits, carelessly parked motorcycles blocked the only entry/exit. The situation was made worse by rains which had turned the paddy fields into mud. As is clear from the events, the stampede was, as always, a cycle of collective behavior that was difficult to stop.

Why does a stampede occur?

Be it a rush to take a holy bath, or the slippery stairs of temples, or, like in Hathras, climbing up to collect soil from the place where the Lord’s feet lay, it is a momentary ‘craze’ that gives rise to a stampede. The patterns repeat themselves in every such accident. It is also clear that investigations rarely lead to accountability or action. Because after the inevitable noise, a deep belief is formed that the stampede cannot be stopped.

Obviously, the fact is that God is considered beyond reproach. Their followers are an easy to use vote bank which no political leader or party wants to lose. Well-established measures have been recommended for large events to reduce the risk of stampedes.

Clear lack of crowd management

While giving approval the administration should ensure that the layout of the venue is made properly. Entry and exit gates should not be closed. There should be a control room, live monitoring of crowd movement, public address system. Also, the density of the crowd should be monitored. These are resources that should be available before the event.

Learning from past incidents is also lacking in India’s crowd management. The religious leader of Hathras had formed his/her own ‘Narayani Sena’ to control the crowd of his/her followers. This reflects a growing awareness of crowd behavior at their events.

According to a 2014 study based on data collected over the past five decades, 79% of stampede incidents in India have occurred at religious events.

• Simple Accidents: A sudden fall or trip can cause panic
• Deliberate actions: Intentional actions, such as pushing or provocative behavior, can provoke a disturbance
• ARumors: False alarm/misinformation can cause mass panic

Almost every major stampede in India has occurred during religious ceremonies. And since this is a religious matter, officials from North to South, East to West search for those responsible.

Five biggest stampedes in the country so far

• 25 January 2005: Mandhar Devi temple in Satara district of Maharashtra, around 300 devotees died
• August 3, 2008: Rumor of landslide in Himachal Pradesh’s Naina Devi temple causes stampede, 146 pilgrims die
• 30 September 2008: Rumor of bomb threat in Chamunda Devi temple in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, 250 people crushed to death
• January 14, 2011: Stampede after jeep collides with pilgrims in Kerala’s Idukki district, 104 Sabarimala devotees killed
• October 13, 2013: Stampede in Ratangarh Mata temple in Datia district of Madhya Pradesh, 115 people died

the biggest stampede in the world

Meanwhile, the worst stampede in history occurred in Chongqing, China during World War II. The Japanese bombing of the city on June 6, 1941 led to a mass exodus to air raid shelters. About 4,000 people died in this. Most of them died due to suffocation.