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Tragic start to the Maha Pushkaralu on Godavari banks as stampede kills 27

Tragic start to the Maha Pushkaralu on Godavari banks as stampede kills 27

By :  DC Correspondent
Update: 2015-07-14 05:47 GMT
The Maha Pushkaralu being held at the banks of Godavari started on a tragic note today with 27 pilgrims being killed in a stampede.
Kanchi Shankaracharya Jayandra Sarswathi also took the sacred bath.
TS and AP tourism are running special interstate buses for the festival. The TS government has earmarked '600 crore for the Godavari Pushkaralu.
The AP government has set up over 100 Pushkara ghats in East and West Godavari districts.
In all, the T-government has set up 106 Pushkara ghats for the pilgrims, pressing in 2300 special buses from all corners of Telangana, 134 special trains, CC cameras, hundreds of cops to ensure security and volunteers to regulate the surging crowds
Some water, however, has been released from Babli dam and other projects. In Telangana, the major Pushkara ghats are in Basar (Adilabad district), Dharmapuri (Karimnagar), Kandakurthi (Nizamabad), Kaleswaram (Karimnagar) and Bhadrachalam (Khammam).
With continuous dry spells since the onset of the monsoon in June and with the Maharashtra government yet to accede to the TS government’s plea to release waters from its dams for the holy dip, water scarcity looms large at many places, especially
TS Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao launched the first Pushkaralu in the temple town of Dharmapuri in Karimnagar district by taking a dip in the holy river along with his family members on Tuesday at 6.26 am. Other than Cabinet Ministers, MPs,
The 12-day 'Pushkaralu' event is similar to the 'Kumbh Mela', which also began today.
A medical store closed as part of nation-wide stirke agai-nst the online sale of medicine, in Rajahmundry on Wednesday. (Photo: DC)
The Godavari Maha Pushkaralu, on the lines of the “Maha Kumbhamela”, occurs once every 144 years and this time it’s being celebrated for 12 days, from July 14 to 25.
A view of the road accident at Gandepalli in East Godavari district on Monday morning. (Photo: DC)
The stampede occurred minutes after Chandrababu Naidu took bath in the Godavari and left in a bus.
According to some eyewitnesses, Minister P Narayana was also stuck in the crowd.
The AP government has announced a compensation of ten lakhs for the families of the deceased.
Opposition parties have criticised state government for poor security arrangements at the ghats and failure of police in controlling surging crowd.
YSRCP Deputy floor leader Jyothula Nehru termed the incident unfortunate and asked government to step up security at the ghats.
To save themselves, devotees climbed the Gopurams, a monumental tower at the entrance of any temple, near the ghats.
Nearly 24 million people are expected to take part in the 12-day festival at varying points along the Godavari River, which flows through the two states.
Earlier today, Naidu, accompanied by his wife and son, took the holy dip here, where the Godavari river is full in its expanse.
Modi said he spoke to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and discussed the situation with him.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the loss of lives in the stampede.
Godavari 'Pushkaralu', the ritual of taking holy dip in the river, is observed once in 12 years, but this time it is considered auspicious from astronomical point of view as it is
 the 'Maha Pushkaralu' which comes once in 144 years.
The bodies were taken to Rajahmundry Government Hospital, officials said.
Nearly 20 people were injured in the incident, which happened as a large number of people tried to rush into the Puskhar ghat to take a holy dip.
The dead included at least 13 women, Sub-Collector, Rajahmundry, Vijaya Ramaraju said.
Tragic start to the Maha Pushkaralu on Godavari banks as stampede kills 27

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