A stampede at Maa Sheetla Mandir in Bihar's Nalanda district killed eight women and injured eight others during special prayers on Tuesday morning. The chaos erupted in Maghra village when women collapsed near the entrance amid a massive crowd, and people behind continued pushing forward. The administration announced Rs 6 lakh ex gratia to the families of the deceased.
Special prayers on the last Tuesday of Chaitra month drew a massive crowd to Maa Sheetla Mandir in Maghra village, Nalanda district, along with a fair that swelled the numbers. Eyewitness Alok Kumar said, "We woke up at around 2 am to the sound of temple bells. The prayers had already started."
The crisis unfolded near the steps to the inner sanctum when women collapsed at the entrance. Local Rudra Singh noted, "No one looks down; everyone keeps looking at the temple while moving forward." Shopkeeper Manoj Kumar described how people behind kept pushing, causing others to fall one after another.
Residents led initial rescue efforts amid the pile-up. Abhay Kumar recounted, "When we entered, people were piled up. We started pulling them out one by one. We tried CPR on some; two regained consciousness."
Ambulances were delayed by congested roads and encroachments. Nalanda SP Bharat Soni stated the temple authorities submitted no prior request for crowd management. Bihar DGP Vinay Kumar visited the site, an SIT was formed led by SDPO and ASP, and Deepnagar SHO was suspended. The eight deceased were mostly from Nalanda, one from Nawada. The situation is now under control.
