‘Electricity hazard rumour’ leads to stampede at Haridwar’s Mansa Devi temple, 8 dead

The stampede took place on a 1.5-km ramp, around 100 metres from the temple entrance. The path, which is less than 3 metres wide, is used by devotees both entering and exiting the temple.

A police officer said the rush from those entering and exiting the temple at the same time made some climb a wall to enter the temple through a shortcut. “Prima facie, when someone tugged on an electric wire while climbing the wall, it is believed to have caused a spark. People started panicking, resulting in the stampede,” the officer said. The wire was connected to the main circuit box on the ramp wall.

VIDEO | Haridwar, Uttarakhand: Stampede-like situation at Mansa Devi Temple. Injured admitted to the hospital; casualties feared. More details awaited.

(Full video available on PTI Videos- https://t.co/dv5TRAShcC) pic.twitter.com/gQ5SdtXjaR

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 27, 2025

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the dead and Rs 50,000 for those injured. The Haridwar District Magistrate has been ordered to conduct a magisterial inquiry into the incident. A thorough review of crowd management and security arrangements is also being undertaken to prevent the recurrence of such incidents, the Chief Minister’s Office said.

Police said an FIR will be registered against unknown persons. “If the probe shows negligence of electricity department officials or other staff, action will be taken against them,” the officer said.

हरिद्वार के मनसा देवी मंदिर मार्ग पर हुए हृदय विदारक हादसे में 6 लोगों की मृत्यु का समाचार अत्यंत दुःखद है। ईश्वर से प्रार्थना है कि दिवंगतों की आत्मा को श्रीचरणों में स्थान एवं शोकाकुल परिजनों को यह असीम दुःख सहन करने की शक्ति प्रदान करें।

प्रदेश सरकार द्वारा मृतकों के…

— Pushkar Singh Dhami (@pushkardhami) July 27, 2025

Six of the dead were from Uttar Pradesh while one was from Bihar and one from Uttarakhand. They have been identified as Arush, 8, from Bareilly, UP; Vikky, 18, and Vishal, 19, from Rampur, UP; Shanti, 60, and Ram Bharose, 43, from Badaun, UP; Vakeel, 43, from Barabanki, UP; Shakal, 18, from Araria, Bihar; and Vipin Saini, 18, from Kashipur, Uttarakhand.

Secretary, Disaster Management, Vinod Kumar Suman said five persons who suffered serious injuries have been referred to AIIMS, Rishikesh. Others are undergoing treatment at the district hospital in Haridwar.

Suman said guidelines will be formulated for crowd control at temples. “We will improve barricading and limit the number of people entering at once, keeping in mind the vulnerable population because we saw three children die today. The incident was not a result of the number of devotees, but because of the panic the rumour created. We had managed the Kanwar Yatra well, when the temple saw a crowd multiple times the current number,” he said.

Currently, the state is seeing an influx of devotees in the month of Sawan. The temple is situated atop Bilwa Parwat, and can be accessed on a ropeway, a motorable road, and the narrow path, where the stampede took place.

According to temple authorities, around 20,000 people are estimated to have reached the temple between 5 and 9 am on Sunday. “In other months, we see around 5,000 a day, but it being a Sunday in Sawan, several people turned up,” said Dhula Ram, a staffer managing the ropeway infrastructure at the temple. “After the Kanwar Yatra ended, police reduced deployment because they didn’t expect a surge in devotees after July 23, and arrangements were relaxed.”