Sabarimala stampede: Govt orders judicial probe

Kochi, Jan 15: Kerala government on Saturday, Jan 15 ordered a judiacial probe to the Sabarimala stampede which killed more than 104 pilgrims and injured other 60. The stampede happened in Sabarimala temple in Kerala on the day of 'Makara Jyoti'.

Kerala Chief Minister, VS Achuthanandan announced the judicial enquiry to the tragedy. The stampede happened on Friday night when pilgrims returned after watching Makara Jyoti. Around two lakhs pilgrims gathered at the hill shrine.

The stampede occurred in 'Pulmedu', traditional forest trekking path used mostly by devotees from Tamil Nadu to reach the hill shrine of Lord Ayyaappa. There are different rumors about the root cause of the incident.

Some media reported that one of the reason was a jeep lost control and ran to pilgrims, which resulted in clash with the pilgrims and jeep travelers. The chaos and confusion later lead to the stampede.

Kerala government has announced Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the pilgrims who were killed, Rs 50,000 to those who injured seriously and Rs 25,000 for those who have minor injuries. Karnataka has also announced Rs 1 lakh to kins of died pilgrims.

OneIndia News