Hathras Tragedy: More than 100 people killed during religious event, witnesses recall stampede

India has a long history of fatal stampedes at religious gatherings, and the Hathras tragedy is not an isolated incident.

In one of the greatest such tragedies in recent memory, over 120 people—mostly women and children—died in a stampede at a satsang (religious meeting) in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh. Narayan Sakaar Hari, popularly known as Sakaar Vishwa Hari or Bhole Baba, was the one who organized the event.

But tragedies like this are not unique to India; over the years, there have been other fatal stampedes at religious events.

In 2005, 340 people died in one of the biggest stampedes at the Mandhardevi temple in Maharashtra. In 2008, 250 people were killed in another stampede at the Chamunda Devi shrine in Jodhpur, Rajasthan.

March 31, 2023: During a "havan" program held at an Indore city temple in honor of Ram Navami, a slab atop an old "baoli," or well, collapsed, killing at least 36 persons.

January 1, 2022: A large influx of devotees caused a stampede at the well-known Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Jammu and Kashmir, resulting in at least 12 fatalities and over a dozen injuries.


July 14, 2015: On the first day of the 'Pushkaram' festival in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh, a large crowd of devotees congregated at a popular bathing place on the banks of the Godavari river. The stampede caused the deaths of 27 pilgrims and the injuries of 20 more.


October 3, 2014: Shortly after the Dussehra celebrations concluded, there was a stampede at Gandhi Maidan in Patna that resulted in 32 fatalities and 26 injuries.

October 13, 2013: During the Navratri celebrations near the Ratangarh temple in Madhya Pradesh's Datia district, a stampede resulted in 115 fatalities and over 100 injuries. The stampede was started by rumors that the river bridge that the devotees were crossing was about to collapse.


November 19, 2012: During the Chhath Puja at Adalat Ghat on the Ganga River bank in Patna, a handmade bridge collapsed, resulting in a stampede that left about 20 people dead and numerous others injured.

November 8, 2011: A stampede at Har-ki-Pauri ghat, on the banks of the Ganga river in Haridwar, claimed the lives of at least twenty people.

January 14, 2011: A jeep drove into pilgrims in Pulmedu in Kerala's Idukki district, resulting in a stampede that left at least 104 Sabarimala devotees dead and over 40 injured.

March 4, 2010: persons flocked to the Ram Janki Temple of Kripalu Maharaj in the Pratapgarh region of Uttar Pradesh to pick up free food and clothing from the self-styled godman, which resulted in a stampede that killed over sixty-three persons.

September 30, 2008: Rumors of a bomb going off at the Chamunda Devi temple in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, caused a stampede that resulted in around 250 devotee deaths and over 60 injuries.

August 3, 2008: Rumors of rockslides at the Naina Devi shrine in the Bilaspur region of Himachal Pradesh caused a rush that resulted in 162 deaths and 47 injuries.

January 25, 2005: During an annual visit to the Mandhardevi temple in the Satara region of Maharashtra, over 340 devotees were crushed to death and hundreds were injured. When devotees broke coconuts, causing the steps to become slick, some persons fell and caused an accident.

August 27, 2003: During the holy bath at the Kumbh Mela in the Nashik district of Maharashtra, there was a stampede that resulted in about 140 injuries and 39 deaths.