The stampede at the Venkateswara Swamy temple broke out when a large crowd surged forward as the temple gates opened, triggering panic among devotees. At least nine devotees were killed and several others injured in a stampede at the Venkateswara Swamy temple in Kasibugga, Andhra Pradesh’s Srikakulam district, on Saturday. The tragedy occurred when thousands gathered at the privately-run temple on the occasion of Ekadashi, leading to overcrowding and the collapse of a railing.
Authorities said the incident could have been avoided had the temple management coordinated with officials about the expected surge of crowd. Soon after the incident, several statements from the government and ministers of the ruling TDP highlighted that the temple was “privately owned and not managed by the Endowments Department.”
What led to the Andhra temple tragedy
According to a statement issued by the Andhra Pradesh government, the stampede broke out when a large crowd surged forward as the temple gates opened, triggering panic among devotees. The statement added that nearly 15,000 people had gathered at the site at the time of the incident.
The government said a railing collapsed under the pressure of the crowd, further intensifying the chaos, as both entry and exit were being managed through the same route. The devotees were climbing to the elevated temple premises, said home minister Vangalapudi Anitha. Citing her statement the temple, located on the first floor, witnessed the collapse of a railing while devotees were climbing, causing those at the corner to fall and others to topple over them.
Meanwhile, Srikakulam SP KV Maheswara Reddy said the tragedy took place because the temple had only one entry and exit point. “There is only one entry and exit. The incident occurred due to the collapse of an iron grill near the steps. The public, in fear, thought that something was falling and panicked,” he added. “They fell from a height of about six feet. Since the collapse was from a height of six feet, one person fell on another, and that led to the incident,” Reddy told reporters in Andhra.
Overwhelming turnout ended in stampede
The state government’s fact-check wing also released a statement on social media by minister for endowments, Anam Ramanarayana, flagging the temple’s private ownership. “The Kasibugga Venkateswara Temple in Srikakulam district, where the stampede occurred, is not under government management… This private temple is not under the control of the Endowments Department,” the post read. It added that while the temple’s capacity was limited to about 2,000–3,000 people, nearly 25,000 devotees arrived at once without prior coordination with authorities.
