12 pilgrims dead, 15 others injured in Vaishno Devi stampede

PM announces ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh NoK of deceased pilgrims, LG Manoj Sinha announces ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh and Rs 2 lakh for injured, orders high level probe

PM announces ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh NoK of deceased pilgrims, LG Manoj Sinha announces ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh and Rs 2 lakh for injured, orders high level probe

Jammu, Jan 01 (KNS): In a tragic incident at Vaishno Devi Bhawan at least 12 persons lost their lives, while 15 others were injured in a stampede near the gate of the temple in the wee hours of Saturday morning, officials said here. 

Reports reaching Kashmir News Service (KNS) said that that due to huge crowd at the temple, there was a stampede near gate no. 3 of Vaishno Devi Bhawan, which resulted in the death of 12 pilgrims and injuries to 15 others.

Eight among the 12 deceased persons have been identified as Dheeraj Kumar(26) from Rajouri, Shweta Singh(35) from Ghaziabad UP, Viney Kumar(24) from Baderpur, Delhi, Sonu Pandey(24) from Baderpur Delhi, Mamta(38) from Beeri Jharjar Haryana, Dharamveer Singh(35) from Salapur Saharanpur UP, Vaneet Kumar(38) from Saharanpur UP, Arun Pratap Singh(30) from Gorakhpur UP.

The injured pilgrims include Rishikesh(23) from Mumbai,Sumit(29) from Punjab, Vikas Tiwari(35) from Mumbai, Ayush(25) from Channi Jammu, Kapil(25) from Delhi, Nitin Garg(30) from Ganga nagar Rajasthan, Bhawar Lal Patida(47) from MP,Sahil Kumar(22) from RS Pura Jammu, Adhaya Mahajan(16) from Channi himat jammu, Prashant Hada(30) from Jaipur Rajasthan and Sarita(42) from Delhi.

Meanwhile, LG Manoj Sinha ordered a high level probe into this tragic incident by a three member team headed by Principal secretary Home with ADGP Jammu zone and Divisional Commissioner Jammu as members.

He also condoled the demise of 12 pilgrims and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh to their familes, besides Rs. 2 lakh for the injured pilgrims. 

Meanwhile, PM Narendra Modi also announced an ex-gartia of Rs 2 lakh for the next of kin of deceased persons.

Divisional Commissioner Jammu Raghav Langer said that an inquiry has been ordered to find out the reason behind this incident, while the yatra was functioning in a regulated manner and all the injured persons were stable.

Meanwhile, former chief minister of J&K and senior Congress leader, Ghulam Nabi Azad has expressed his heartfelt grief on the tragic incident.

He also demanded for adequate compensation to the family members of those deceased and proper medical attention to those who were injured. (KNS)

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