Puri: A stampede-like situation occurred during the Rath Yatra in Puri on Thursday which left at least 300 devotees seriously injured, triggering chaos and raising fresh concerns about crowd management at the annual event. The incident occurred near Shri Nahar, the royal palace of the Gajapati king, during the “Pahari” ritual of Lord Jagannath when the crowd became unmanageable due to a massive gathering of devotees.

The stampede-like situation took place as devotees rushed forward to touch the ropes of Lord Balabhadra’s chariot, Taladhwaja, in a show of devotion and attempted to pull it towards the Gundicha Temple, about 2.5 km away.

The injured were admitted to Hi-Tech Hospital. Of these, 173 were placed in the High Dependency Unit (HDU), and 68 received treatment at the OPD. At least eight devotees in serious condition were referred to the District Headquarters Hospital (DHH).

This is the second consecutive year that a stampede-like situation has occurred during the Rath Yatra. In 2024, a devotee reportedly died due to suffocation in a similar crowd surge on the Grand Road when the chariot was being pulled. Despite stricter measures this year, the administration was unable to prevent the mishap. An investigation into the incident and the lapses in crowd control is likely.