Deadly stampedes are relatively common around Indian religious festivals, where big crowds gather in small areas with shoddy infrastructure and few safety measures.An ambulance at the Sikandrarao hospital in Hathras district, southwest of Lucknow, India, July 2, 2024.Updated:LUCKNOW, Uttar Pradesh — Thousands of people at a religious gathering in India rushed to leave a makeshift tent, setting off a stampede Tuesday that killed at least 116 people and injured scores, officials said.
More than 80 others were injured and admitted to hospitals, senior police officer Shalabh Mathur said. Police officer Rajesh Singh said there was likely overcrowding at the event in a village in Hathras district about 350 kilometers southwest of the state capital, Lucknow. Uttar Pradesh's chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, called the stampede"heart-wrenching” in a post on X. He said authorities were investigating.