A human stampede occurred on 30 September 2008, at the Chamunda Devi temple in

Jodhpur Jodhpur (; ) is the second-largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan and officially the second metropolitan city of the state. It was formerly the seat of the princely state of Jodhpur State. Jodhpur was historically the capital of the ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, in which 224 people were killedIndia stampede death toll rises, ''BBC News''
(2 October 2008)Death toll in Jodhpur temple stampede rises to 224, ''Hindustan Times''
(3 October 2008) and more than 425 injured. The 15th-century temple is dedicated to the goddess Chamunda Devi and is located within the premises of

Mehrangarh Fort Mehrangarh Fort covers an area of 1,200 acres (486 hectares) in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. The complex is located on a hilltop around 122 metres above the surrounding plain, and was constructed by Rajput ruler Rao Jodha, though most of the ex ...

. About 25,000

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

pilgrims were visiting the temple to mark the first day of the nine-day-long

Navratri Navaratri is an annual Hindu festival observed in the honour of the goddess Durga. It spans over nine nights (and ten days), first in the month of Chaitra (March/April of the Gregorian calendar), and again in the month of Sharada. It is o ...

, a major festival in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

dedicated to the worship of Goddess Durga.

Cause

The devotees scrambled towards the door the moment it opened, resulting in the destruction of the barricades. Many people were injured when they lost their footing on the slope approaching the temple. According to ''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...

'', local reports suggest that a

bomb blast An explosion is a rapid expansion in volume associated with an extreme outward release of energy, usually with the generation of high temperatures and release of high-pressure gases. Supersonic explosions created by high explosives are known ...

in nearby Mehrangarh created panic among the pilgrims resulting in the

stampede A stampede () is a situation in which a group of large animals suddenly start running in the same direction, especially because they are excited or frightened. Non-human species associated with stampede behavior include zebras, cattle, elephants ...

. However, the ''

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

'' reported that a collapsing wall may have also caused the stampede. Some eyewitnesses told ''

CNN-IBN CNN-News18 (originally CNN-IBN) is an Indian English-language news television channel founded by Raghav Bahl based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is currently co-owned by Network18 Group and Warner Bros. Discovery. CNN provides internat ...

'' that a rumour about a bomb being planted in the temple caused panic among pilgrims. Others said there was a scramble in the men's queue; some devotees slipped and soon there was a massive resultant stampede where a day of celebration turned into one of mourning. An eyewitness also said that the path leading to the temple was very narrow with no emergency exit routes.

Aftermath

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

doctors were called to assist the local authorities in the relief operation.

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Mod ...

Rajnath Singh Rajnath Singh (; born 10 July 1951) is an Indian politician serving as the Defence Minister of India. He is currently the Deputy Leader of the House Lok Sabha. He is the former President of Bharatiya Janata Party. He has previously served as ...

assured speedy relief to the victims of the tragedy. Chief Minister

Vasundhara Raje Vasundhara Raje Scindia (born 8 March 1953) is an Indian politician, who has held two terms as the chief minister of Rajasthan. She was previously a minister in the Union Cabinet of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and was India's first Minister of Micro, S ...

visited the site and ordered inquiry into the incident. Local authorities revealed that most of the dead were men as the queue for women was separate.

Reactions

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand ( , or ; , ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; the official name until 2007), is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" (literally 'Land of the Gods') due to its religious significance and ...

Chief Minister B C Khanduri and

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

B L Joshi both expressed grief over the death of the pilgrims at the Chamunda Devi temple. A

Raj Bhavan Raj Bhavan () is the common name of the official residences of the governors of the states of India and may refer to: List of Raj Bhavan See also * Raj Niwas *Rashtrapati Bhavan The Rashtrapati Bhavan (, rāsh-truh-puh-ti bha-vun; ; o ...

statement issued a condolence message saying Joshi conveyed his deepest sorrow to the bereaved families of the dead and said he would pray for the speedy recovery of those injured in the incident. Khanduri followed too in expressing grief over the accident. He also directed District Magistrates of all the 13 districts of his state to make special arrangements at religious places as they are expected to attract large crowds during the Navratra period. Jodhpur Muslims decided to keep the Eid celebrations next day a low-key affair. Local Muslim youth joined rescue teams, ferried victims to hospitals and donated blood.

References

External links

Picture gallery of the aftermath of stampede
*NDTV: Bloggers vent ire over Jodhpur stampede *Dainik Bhaska

*Dainik Bhaska

*Dainik Bhaska

{{Human stampedes Human stampedes in 2008, Jodhpur stampede Jodhpur stampede Human stampedes in India History of Jodhpur 2000s in Rajasthan Disasters in Rajasthan