Tragic stampede at Mansa Devi temple in Haridwar claims six lives

New Delhi: A tragic stampede at the Mansa Devi Temple in Haridwar early Sunday claimed six lives and injured several others, authorities confirmed. 

The incident occurred as thousands of devotees converged on the hilltop shrine atop Bilwa Parvat, accessed by both a popular ropeway service and a narrow footpath. 

Witnesses said panic erupted when a sudden bottleneck formed on the pathway, triggering a crush that left unprepared pilgrims with little room to manoeuvre.

Garhwal Division Commissioner Vinay Shankar Pandey, who rushed to the scene upon hearing the news, said rescue teams—including local police, fire personnel and medical staff—worked swiftly to evacuate the injured and transport them to nearby hospitals, which remain on high alert. He added that a full report on the sequence of events and the precise cause of the stampede would be compiled once rescue operations concluded.

The Mansa Devi Temple, established in 1811 as a Siddh Peeth, is part of Haridwar’s Panch Tirth circuit and sees over one million visitors each year, especially on auspicious days. In 2017, the “Mansa Devi Udankhatola” ropeway was introduced to ease congestion, but today’s tragedy has raised fresh doubts about whether infrastructure improvements alone can prevent such calamities without comprehensive crowd-management protocols.

India’s record of stampede disasters at religious gatherings is grim: the 2013 bridge collapse in Ratangarh killed 115 people, and the 2024 Hathras tragedy claimed 121 lives. A 2019 study of the 2016 Ardh Kumbh Mela pointed to inadequate spatial planning and weak enforcement of safety norms as recurring risk factors. The Archaeological Survey of India has also warned of overcrowding at Uttarakhand’s heritage sites in recent years.

News Drum will continue to provide updates as more information emerges.