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Puri | At least three persons, including two women, were killed and around 50 others injured in a stampede near Shree Gundicha Temple in Odisha’s Puri on Sunday morning, officials said.

The incident took place around 4 am when hundreds of devotees gathered near the temple to witness Rath Yatra festivities, Puri District Collector Siddharth S Swain said.

The injured have been admitted to a nearby hospital, and the condition of six people is critical, he said.

“Out of the 50 injured, six people are still unconscious and their condition is very serious,” an official of the medical facility, where they are undergoing treatment, said.

Chaos ensued after two trucks carrying materials for rituals reportedly entered the crowded spot near the chariots of Lord Jagannath and his sibling deities, officials said.

Devotees in large numbers had assembled outside the temple since the early hours to catch a glimpse of the deities when the ‘Pahuda’ (cloth) covering their faces was to be removed, as part of the rituals, they said.

The deceased were identified as Basanti Sahu (36) from Bolagarh, and Premakant Mohanty (80) and Pravati Das (42) from Balipatna.

In a post on X, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi sought forgiveness from devotees of Lord Jagannath for the stampede, and tendered an apology on behalf of his government for the incident.

“Due to intense eagerness among devotees to have a glimpse of Mahaprabhu... an unfortunate incident occurred because of the resulting jostling and chaos. I and my government seek forgiveness from all Jagannath devotees. We express our condolences to the families of devotees who lost their lives... pray to Mahaprabhu Jagannath to grant them the strength to bear this profound sorrow,” Majhi said.

He also said that security lapses behind the incident will be probed and those found guilty would face stringent action.

“This negligence is unpardonable. An immediate investigation into the security lapses will be conducted, and I have directed that necessary steps be taken to initiate exemplary action against those responsible,” Majhi said.

Odisha Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan said DGP Y B Khurania is investigating the stampede incident, and stringent action against the guilty would be ensured.

Harichandan also said that the situation is now normal at the Shree Gundicha Temple, where devotees are offering prayers to the deities on chariots.

Majhi is currently chairing a meeting with his deputies to assess the stampede situation, an official said.

Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in Odisha assembly and BJD chief Naveen Patnaik claimed that the stampede exposed the state government’s glaring incompetence in ensuring a peaceful Rath Yatra for devotees.

“I extend my heartfelt condolences to the families of the three devotees who have lost their lives in the tragic stampede at Saradhabali, #Puri and I pray to Mahaprabhu Jagannatha for the swift recovery of the devotees injured in this devastating incident,” Patnaik said in a post on X.

“Today’s stampede, occurring just a day after the abysmal failure of crowd management during the #RathYatra that left hundreds injured, exposes the government’s glaring incompetence in ensuring a peaceful festival for devotees,” the former chief minister said.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said he was deeply pained by the stampede, and asserted that the “negligence and mismanagement” which led to the tragedy are inexcusable.

“I am deeply pained by the stampede during the Mahaprabhu Jagannath Rath Yatra, which claimed three lives and injured at least 50 people. This tragedy follows reports of 500 devotees being injured on Friday during the yatra.

“My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims. I wish a speedy recovery to all the injured devotees. The negligence and mismanagement that led to this tragedy are inexcusable,” Kharge wrote on X.

Health department sources said among those critically injured, one has been shifted to the SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack, while five others are in ICU.

A man, whose wife was among those who died in the stampede, later told reporters: “Several devotees fell while hurrying to get a glimpse of the deities on the chariots. There were no police officers. An ambulance was parked about one km from the accident site, and the injured had to be carried to the vehicle.”

The chariots of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra had on Saturday reached Shree Gundicha Temple, a day after the Rath Yatra began in Puri.

The temple is considered the aunt's place of the deities, which go there every year from the 12th-century Jagannath temple, situated at a distance of 2.6 km, as part of the rituals.

The return car journey, known as 'Bahuda Yatra', will held this year on July 5.