More Than Two Dozen Killed in Kumbh Mela Stampede

Kevin Frayer/Associated Press A man grieving over his wife, who was killed during a stampede at the Allahabad railway station, Uttar Pradesh, on Sunday.

ALLAHABAD, Uttar Pradesh â€" As many as 30 people were killed Sunday in a stampede at a train station here as millions gathered for a Hindu religious festival.

The stampede erupted on a platform of the main railway station in Allahabad as religious pilgrims passed through it on their way to the festival, Kumbh Mela on the banks of the Ganges River.

Sunday was one of the busiest days of the 55-day festival; 30 million people were expected to take a dip in theGanges River to cleanse themselves of sin.

About 30 bodies, covered in white sheets, were visible on the train platform on Sunday evening. Several appeared to be children.

The stampede was set off by railway delays, shoddy infrastructure and overcrowding, several witnesses said.

Train services were severely delayed during the early evening, witnesses said, leaving growing numbers of passengers stranded  in the small station.

Panic spread after a railing broke on a footbridge over the tracks in the Allahabad station, sending a few people tumbling to their deaths. The tightly packed crowds rushed to get off the footbridge, and others were trampled.

“I can’t believe God punished us this way,” said one pilgrim, Santos Singh. “My 15-year-old son got injured. I wish the police were more responsive.”

“People tripped over the steps leading to platform 6,” Lalji Shukla, deputy inspector general of Allahabad police, said in an inte! rview.

At least an hour after the incident occurred, there were still no medical workers on the scene.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressed shock at the episode and said in a public statement: “I am deeply shocked to learn of the unfortunate incident at the Allahabad Railway station today, in which precious lives have been lost and many pilgrims to Kumbh Mela among other people have been injured.”

Mr. Singh directed the Ministry of Railways to provide all “necessary assistance” to those who were involved and promised compensation for the families of the dead or injured.

Raksha Kumar reported from Allahabad, and Heather Timmons and Malavika Vyawahare from New Delhi