3 die in stampede during Jagannath Rath Yatra in India’s Odisha

Three people have been killed and 10 others injured in a stampede during the Rath Yatra in India’s Odisha.

The incident occurred in Puri, about 3km from Jagannath temple where the procession began, around 4:30am, NDTV reports.

A large crowd had gathered in the area. As the crowd swelled, some people fell and a stampede began.

The dead were identified as Prabhati Das, Basanti Sahu, and 70-year-old Premakant Mohanty. All three hailed from Khurda District and had come to Puri for the event.

Some of those injured are in critical condition, reports say.

Local media have also claimed that police crowd control at the location was inadequate.

Puri Collector Siddharth Shankar Swain said the bodies of the victims had been sent for autopsy and would reveal the exact cause of death.

Adequate security arrangements had been made, but the crowd suddenly went out of control, he claimed.

During Rath Yatra, three grand chariots with the idols of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Shubhadra are drawn by a massive crowd of devotees. The holy chariots are taken to the Gundicha Temple. The three deities spend a week there before returning to the Jagannath Temple.