PATNA: In a tragic turn of events during the holy month of Shravan, seven devotees—all women—lost their lives and over a dozen others sustained injuries following a severe stampede at the historic Ashok Dham (Indradamneshwar Mahadev) Temple in Bihar’s Lakhisarai district early Monday morning.The disaster unfolded around 6:40am on the occasion of the third Somwari (Monday), a day that routinely sees thousands of pilgrims arrive for the Jalabhisheka ritual.According to eyewitnesses, panic erupted after a non-live cable line collapsed from a nearby electric pole located near the men’s entry queue.The falling wire immediately triggered false rumours among the thousands of pilgrims that a live power line had snapped and electric current was spreading through the ground.Lakhisarai district magistrate Shailendra Kumar said there was unprecedented crowd after two trains also had the stoppage at the same time.DM Kumar noted that between 6:30am and 6:45am, two local passenger trains arrived simultaneously at the nearby Ashok Dham halt, unleashing a fresh wave of thousands of devotees onto the temple grounds right as the panic broke out.Emergency rescue teams and police officials immediately rushed the injured to local hospitals.Officials confirmed that those admitted for suffocating conditions and minor injuries are out of danger.Chief minister Samrat Choudhary expressed deep grief over the loss of lives, terming the accident “extremely tragic and heart-wrenching”.“The news of the deaths of devotees has left my heart deeply distressed. My deepest condolences go out to the bereaved families,” Choudhary said. The chief minister directed the local administration to ensure expeditious medical treatment for all injured devotees and announced an ex-gratia compensation of Rs 4 lakh for the next of kin of each deceased.Taking to social media, opposition leader Tehashwi Prasad wrote, “I am deeply pained by the news of many devotees being injured and the untimely death of seven people in a tragic accident caused by electric current spread due to a snapped power line, resulting in panic and a stampede during Jalabhisheka on the third Monday of Sawan at Ashok Dham (Indra Dambneshwar Mahadev Temple) in Lakhisarai district of Bihar. The lack of proper security and crowd management for devotees in the temple premises reflects the administrative mismanagement of the NDA government.”
