Key Takeaways:

• A stampede at the Maha Kumbh festival in Prayagraj has resulted in at least 30 fatalities and numerous injuries.
• The incident occurred as tens of millions of Hindus rushed to bathe in sacred rivers on a particularly auspicious day of the festival.
• Authorities have faced criticism for mismanagement amidst the event's massive crowd of around 100 million devotees.

NEW DELHI — A tragic stampede at the ongoing Maha Kumbh festival in Prayagraj, India, has reportedly left at least VOA News indicating 30 individuals dead, with many more injured as millions of Hindu pilgrims rushed to participate in ritual baths during the significant religious event. This year’s Maha Kumbh, which unfolded on January 13, is expected to attract over 400 million attendees throughout its 45-day duration, marking it as the world's largest religious gathering.

The stampede took place early Wednesday between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m., as pilgrims attempted to breach barricades set up for a procession of holy men. Witnesses reported that the atmosphere became chaotic when pushing ensued in the densely packed crowd, trapping many devotees. "Suddenly there was pushing in the crowd, and we got trapped," said one pilgrim, describing the incident to a news agency. Distressed families gathered outside makeshift hospitals, searching for their loved ones amid the chaos, with belongings littering the ground at the site of the tragedy.

Uttar Pradesh's Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath, emphasized that the situation was currently managed but acknowledged the substantial number of pilgrims present. By noon Wednesday, around 30 million devotees had already taken their sacred baths. Despite the tragedy, the government continues to grapple with unprecedented crowd sizes, with estimates indicating that between Newsweek 90 million to 100 million individuals were seeking to cleanse themselves at the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati rivers, which is regarded as a highly spiritual occasion in Hinduism.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences on Time, calling the incident "extremely sad" but campaigns for improved management have surfaced amidst the tragedy. Critics have accused the government of mismanaging the event, blaming the surge of pilgrims on "VIP culture" which they assert prioritizes the needs of celebrities and politicians over common devotees. This incident adds to a grim history of tragedies at the Maha Kumbh festival; in 2013, a similar incident resulted in the deaths of at least 40 individuals.

Efforts to manage the influx included around 50,000 security personnel and 2,500 surveillance cameras to monitor crowd density. Despite these precautions, the overwhelming volume of attendees has highlighted the ongoing challenges authorities face in ensuring safety during such significant religious events.

As the festival continues, officials are urging attendees to take extra precautions and may need to consider enhanced crowd control measures to prevent further incidents as the event progresses.

For more details, visit the full coverage from AP News.