- The Centre has instructed the union territory authorities to provide better treatment to the injured and move them immediately to a hospital with best facilities if necessary.
As many as 12 people were killed and 13 others injured after a stampede occurred at Mata Vaishno Devi shrine on Saturday morning which, officials said, was triggered by a heavy rush of devotees.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the loss of lives in the stampede and offered his condolences to the families of the victims. “Extremely saddened by the loss of lives due to a stampede at Mata Vaishno Devi Bhawan. Condolences to the bereaved families. May the injured recover soon. Spoke to JK LG Shri @manojsinha_ Ji, Ministers Shri @DrJitendraSingh Ji, @nityanandraibjp Ji and took stock of the situation,” PM Modi tweeted.
Jammu and Kashmir Police chief Dilbag Singh said initial reports suggest that an argument first broke out between people which later resulted in stampede. The cop also informed the incident took place at around 2:45am.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha briefed Union home Minister Amit Shah about the stampede and said a high-level inquiry has been ordered into the incident. “The Inquiry Committee will be headed by Principal Secretary (Home) with ADGP, Jammu and Divisional Commissioner, Jammu as members,” Sinha added.
The yatra which was suspended for a short while following the stampede has now resumed.
Ex-gratia of ₹10 lakh each would be given to the next of kin of those who lost their lives due to stampede and ₹2 lakh to the injured,” he said.
The Prime Minister announced an ex-gratia of ₹2 lakh each from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) to the next of kin of those who lost their lives. The injured will be given ₹50,000.
The injured have been admitted to various hospitals, including Mata Vaishno Devi Narayana Superspeciality Hospital, and the condition of many of the injured was stated to be “serious”.
Meanwhile, the Centre has instructed the union territory authorities to provide better treatment to the injured and move them immediately to a hospital with best facilities if necessary, according to news agency ANI.
