Indian bishops mourn stampede deaths at massive Hindu festival attended by millions

An aerial view of tents installed at Sangam ahead of Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj on Jan. 7, 2025. / Credit: prabhat kumar verma/Shutterstock

Bangalore, India, Feb 3, 2025 / 13:20 pm (CNA).

The Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) has expressed condolences over the tragic death of at least 30 Hindu pilgrims and over 60 injured in a stampede Jan. 29 at the city of Prayagraj (Allahabad) in the northern Uttar Pradesh state.

“Kumbhmela” (meaning “festival of the sacred pitcher”) is the largest single gathering in India. Occurring once every 12 years, it sees millions flock to Prayagraj for prayers and a holy dip at the confluence spot of the rivers Ganges and Yamuna and the mythologized Saraswati River, all considered sacred in Hinduism.

According to organizers, this year’s six-week-long festival that began in mid-January is estimated to draw 400 million Hindus to Prayagraj, 340 miles south of New Delhi.

“It is heartbreaking to witness such a calamity during a sacred event that draws millions in devotion,” said CCBI President Cardinal Filipe Neri at the Jan. 30 opening session of the bishops’ assembly. The Catholic event is attended by 204 prelates from 132 Latin-rite dioceses in India.

“In this time of mourning, we, the bishops of India, unite in prayer for the departed souls and their loved ones. May God grant strength to the grieving families, healing to the injured, and eternal rest to those who have passed away,” Neri said.

This is not the first deadly stampede at the Kumbhmela. Over 800 pilgrims were trampled or drowned in 1954, while 42 people were killed in a stampede at the Allahabad railway station in 2013. 

Earlier on Jan. 30 during a morning Mass, Cardinal Anthony Poola of Hyderabad requested a special Mass intention for the stampede victims.

The annual CCBI assembly is being held for the first time in the eastern Odisha state at the Jesuit Xavier University at Bhubaneswar, the state capital.

Local diocese assists police responding to crisis

Father Babu Francis, the social services director of the Diocese of Allahabad where the deadly incident took place, told CNA that responding to a request from the government, the diocese opened its four educational institutions around the “holy dip” confluence area for the police to rest.

“Many of the police on duty have been brought from distant places and they cannot afford to go and return to this crowded area. So, we have obliged the government request,” Francis told CNA.

Meanwhile, the CCBI assembly also observed the “Martyrs’ Day” on Jan. 30 with Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli, the apostolic nuncio to India, garlanding a statue of Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion.

The “Martyrs’ Day” observance in India marks the day Mahatma Gandhi — known as “Father of the Nation” — was assassinated in 1948.