Haridwar's Mansa Devi Temple stampede: 'Crowd grew too big, too fast' - What really happened?

A tragic stampede at the Mansa Devi temple in Haridwar on Sunday morning claimed the lives of eight devotees and left at least 28 others injured. The incident took place around 8.30 am when more than 5,000 pilgrims were packed tightly on a narrow, 5-foot-wide pedestrian path leading to the temple, located near the iconic Har Ki Pauri ghat.

According to the survivors, the stampede was triggered by rumours that live electric wires had fallen along the route, causing panic among the crowd. People started running in different directions, leading to a chaotic crush in which several were trampled.

However, the temple authorities have dismissed reports of electrocution as the cause behind the stampede. Among the victims were Vipin Saini (18) and Vicky Saini (19), cousins from Rampur, Uttar Pradesh. Their relative, Sachin Saini, who was with them, recalled the terrifying moments.

"People started fleeing in fear after the rumours spread. Several fell to the ground and couldn't get up,” The Times of India quoted Sachin as saying. Those who lived through the crush described a scene of confusion and terror. Shambu Singh from Bihar had travelled with his friend Shakal Dev (38), who died in the stampede. "We were just a few metres from the shrine when the crowd suddenly surged. There was no space to move," he said.

Scenes of panic

Rohit Sharma (21), from Mainpuri, who survived with injuries, said, "I am extremely lucky to have escaped the jaws of death. People were screaming and crying for help. I was praying to god to save me."

Vinod Shah (35), a devotee from Bhagnapur, described being trapped from both directions. "The crowd had stalled completely. There were rumours that the temple gate was shut, and people coming down collided with those going up. Then people just started falling. By god's grace, I survived."

Gaurav Singh, a resident, said the panic escalated when people began climbing the walls. "Youths helped carry the injured up to the temple path and then down to the road using scooters and motorcycles," he said.

A video of the stampede showed people stuck in the chaos being frantically asked to go back as crowd swelled from all directions, Hindustan Times reported. The video showed a man frantically appealing to the people in the crowd to go back, another showed a person describing the chaos and showing children struggling to get space in the crush.

Where exactly the stampede occurred?

The walkway where the stampede occurred is one of the oldest routes to the Mansa Devi temple. It consists of nearly 700 steep steps and lies within the Raja Ji National Park. During high footfall, the path is supposed to be managed for one-way movement.

However, officials admitted that the crowd grew too large too quickly on Sunday, especially since it was both a weekend and the auspicious month of Sawan, a time when pilgrim turnout is typically very high. Following the incident, the injured were rushed to nearby hospitals.

Local residents stepped in to assist the police and rescue teams. Gaurav Singh, a local, said people climbed walls in panic, while some youths used scooters and motorcycles to transport the injured down the hill.

Many survivors and locals blamed the stampede on overcrowding and lack of proper crowd control on the narrow path. They said that given the known rush during Saawan Sundays, the administration should have taken stronger precautions and ensured proper arrangements to manage the flow of devotees.