So far 6 people have died and many devotees have been seriously injured in the stampede at Tirupati Balaji temple in Andhra Pradesh. This accident happened when a huge crowd of devotees reached Tirupati’s Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple for ‘Vaikuntha Dwar Darshan’ tickets. This darshan was to start from January 9, but the chaos in ticket distribution and the pressure of the crowd created a serious situation, which led to this accident.
Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD), the administrative body of Tirupati temple, has expressed regret over the incident and assured compensation to the families of the deceased. TTD officials say that all security measures will be reviewed again after this accident. After this incident, the temple administration has started taking measures to increase security arrangements and avoid stampede, so that such an incident does not happen in future.
The temple administration also said that more strict arrangements will be made for the sale of tickets in future, so that people do not have to face such a problem. According to TTD, “The situation went out of control due to heavy rush and lapses in the arrangements for distribution of tickets for Vaikuntha Dwar Darshan.”
TTD board member Bhanu Prakash Reddy said, “Tokens were being distributed for Ekadashi Darshan in the temple, and for this we had opened 91 counters. It is very sad that a stampede broke out. 6 people died and 40 were injured in this stampede. We are providing medical facilities to all. Such a thing has never happened in the history of TTD till date. I apologize to all the devotees.”
When did the incident happen and what were the reasons
The officials of Sri Venkateswara Temple had planned to issue tickets for ‘Vaikuntha Dwar Darshan’ from January 9. There was special enthusiasm among the devotees about this darshan, as it is a special day and special puja is performed in the temple on this day. According to the information, about 4 thousand people were in line to get the ticket, and the number of counters was only 91. Meanwhile, the crowd became uncontrollable and a stampede occurred. People started running fast here and there, due to which many people fell on the ground. Due to this, 6 people died.
Many people have been seriously injured in this accident. Some of the injured devotees have been admitted to the hospital, where the condition of many of them is said to be critical.
After this accident, many leaders and social workers have criticized the Tirupati temple administration. They say that the temple administration should have made concrete arrangements for the safety of the devotees in advance. Many people also raised the question that if the sale of tickets was already scheduled, then why did such a large number of people gather in the temple premises?
Some devotees said that they thought that tickets would not be available, so they started reaching the temple from January 8 itself. They alleged that this incident happened due to the chaos in the token system.
Prime Minister, Chief Minister expressed grief
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu expressed grief over the incident and said that he was shocked by this accident. He said, “I am closely monitoring the situation. I will meet the families of the victims on Thursday morning.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also expressed grief over the incident and said, “I am saddened by the stampede in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. My condolences are with those who have lost their loved ones. I pray that the injured recover soon. The Andhra Pradesh government is providing all possible help to the affected people.
At the same time, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wrote, “The stampede in Tirupati is very sad. My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. I wish all the injured a speedy recovery. I urge Congress leaders and workers to provide all possible help in this difficult time.”
