India is a land where people believe in various gods and goddesses. Our faith and trust in a divine power have over the centuries grown immensely. The places have been an integral part of the devotees in their spiritual journeys.
The people of India have been deeply involved in religious practices. People perform ceremonies and follow traditions at almost every possible event, this has been a crucial part of their lives.
Unfortunately recently one of the most popular shrines- Bankey Bihari temple had 2 casualties due to overcrowding inside the temple arena. This unfortunate event happened on the day of Janmashtami, a day which is celebrated as the birthday of lord Krishna.
Every year thousands of devotees come to Mathura to pray to lord Krishna and celebrate this day and let the blessings of the lord be with them. Yamuna expressway has shortened the distance for many visitors from Delhi NCRÂ and weekends and holidays are totally havoc at times.
This year too after the pandemic people were gathered wanting to celebrate the occasion with great enthusiasm and fervor in immense numbers and this resulted in a stampede inside the corridor. The passage that leads to the main temple is extremely narrow which also makes it highly congested. The incident took place on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday occurred when the officials including the district magistrate, SSP, and municipal commissioner were present on the temple premises keeping in view the expected crowd on the day of the celebration.
This is not the first time that such an unfortunate event has happened in this divine place. Opposition parties have critically analyzed the situation and have pointed out that such an event took place in the past.
Past tragic incidents at Bankey Bihari Temple
February 12, 2022 – A 65-year-old man died on the stairs of the temple,Â
January 1, 2017 – Two were injured in a stampede on New Year’s Day
July 21, 2012 – Devotees from Delhi died because of suffocation
August 19, 2012 – Devotees injured because railing broke
September 9, 2012 – Two devotees injured in crowd pressureÂ
Many organizations have suggested taking certain actions to avoid chaos at such devotional shrines. It was suggested earlier by many people to broaden the road leading to the temple by acquiring old constructions alongside or to shift the idol (temple) to some open area with ample space for parking but nothing concrete could materialize.
Despite many suggestions, nothing discrete has taken place on the streets of Mathura, in the way which leads to our divinity.
The authorities must take action as soon as possible because the lives of people cannot be lost in any such unfortunate incidents as people come with a lot of faith and trust to visit such shrines.
