Makar Sankranti Mela Stampede: Badamba-Gopinathpur T-Bridge 1 died, 20 injured

January 14, 2023January 14, 2023 MTIMES

Cuttack: One person died and 20 injuries in a stampede on Badamba- Gopinathpur T Bridge in Athagarh, Cuttack. Badamba MLA Debi Prasad Mishra confirmed that a woman died while 20 others were injured in Makar Sankranti mela Stampede.

The Hon’ble Chief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik has expressed deep grief over the death of a woman in the stampede in Singhanath Temple Peetha and has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the next of kin of the deceased. The Chief Minister has directed to provide proper treatment to the injured free of cost in Makar Sankranti Mela Stampede.

“The crowd was 3 to 4 times more than the estimation. Approximately 1.2 to 2 lakh people congregated. Our main focus is to evacuate the people stuck on the bridge and at the shrine.” Athagarh Sub Collector Hemanta Kumar Swain said.

“In the stampede, one person died at the hospital. 8 seriously injured are undergoing treatment.” MLA Debi Prasad Mishra said. The deceased woman was a resident of Pathuripada village in Banki.

“The number of devotees turned up at the shrine was beyond all expectations. However, to control the crowd on the bridge, we have deployed three platoons of police force. The Sub Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Athagarh along with his officials is presently controlling the crowd.” Cuttack Rural Additional SP Ranjit Prusty said.

The Makar mela has been cancelled and the entry of devotees into the temple has been restricted by the district administration. The Cuttack district administration has also imposed section 144 for 2 days.

Also, Three platoons of police force have been deployed to control the law and order situation in Makar mela. The sub-Collector of Athagarh will probe the whole mela-stamped incident, and order the Cuttack DM.

Notably, Today on Makar Sankranti, there was a huge rush on the bridge which connects Singhanath Temple located in the middle of the Mahanadi River. This stampede occurred when the devotees were negotiating along the bridge.