Days after stampede kills 12, online booking begins at Vaishno Devi shrine

Victim being taken to hospital in Jammu and Kashmir. Photo/ANI

A day after the stampede at the Mata Vaishno Devi hill shrine, authorities on Sunday tightened arrangements with full deployment of security personnel and announced a slew of steps to prevent any congestion at the temple complex as the rush of pilgrims continued.

A high-powered probe committee set up by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha visited the site and appealed to the general public to share videos, statements or any other evidence about the incident.

Mr Sinha chaired the first meeting of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board after the stampede and several decisions were taken to ensure the safety of devotees, including provision for 100 percent online registration.

More than 27,000 pilgrims had visited the cave shrine on Saturday, while over 15,000 visited on Sunday till 6 PM, according to officials.

The yatra that registered a footfall of over 55.77 lakh in 2021, compared to 17 lakh the previous year due to the coronavirus pandemic, was going on smoothly, they said.

Twelve people lost their lives and 16 others were injured in the stampede in the early hours of Saturday after a fight between two groups of pilgrims during the New Year rush. Many eyewitnesses said that there was overcrowding as people were staying back on the shrine premises after darshan instead of returning to the base camp at Katra.

It was the first such tragedy at the revered shrine, located atop the Trikuta hills in Reasi district, where pilgrims reach after a 13-km trek.

"Directions issued for physical and systematic improvements wherever required after critical examination, augmentation of infrastructure, online booking to be made 100 percent," LG Sinha said in a series of tweets after the meeting which was attended by senior officials, including Board's Chief Executive Officer Ramesh Kumar.

"Steps including decongestion of the entire track, appropriate use of technology for effective crowd and queue management, RFID tracking to be put in place. Members of the board to monitor the implementation," Mr Sinha said.

He also announced an additional ex gratia grant of ₹ 5 lakh each to the families of devotees who lost their lives in the incident.

At the temple complex, police personnel encouraged pilgrims not to linger after paying obeisance and to obey COVID-19 protocols.

"As we entered the sanctum sanctorum of the Mata to offer our prayers, we were greeted by the words 'Darshan Karo Katra Challo' (pay obeisance and leave for Katra base camp) from the deployed policemen," Motiya Rani (58), a resident of Panipat in Haryana, told PTI on Sunday.

Rani, accompanied by her two sons, their wives and five grandchildren, said the yatra was going on smoothly and they did not face any problem.

"I have been visiting Mata to seek her blessings on the first day of every year for many years. I reached Katra on December 31 and was scheduled to visit the shrine on Saturday but the unfortunate incident delayed our visit by a day this time," she said.

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