Swastika Sharma,who died in the blast,would have turned one on December 18. The only child of her parents,she was sitting on her mothers lap when the blast took place.
A pellet hit her in the head and she fell down. Then she got trampled in the stampede, said her uncle Sanjay Sharma. The child was rushed to the Laxmi Narayan Marwari Hindu Hospital where doctors declared her dead on arrival.
Apart from her mother Suman Sharma,her maternal grandmother Urmila had gone along to watch the Ganga aarti. Both suffered injuries but were discharged after first aid at the hospital.
The girls father Santosh Kumar Sharma is a lecturer at the Dhirendra Mahila Vidyalaya. The family stays in Asi Ghat area of Varanasi.
Sanjay Sharma said Suman,along with her daughter,was visiting her mother who lives near Dasashwamedh Ghat.