At least 35 killed, 16 injured after well cover collapses inside packed temple in India

AT least 35 people lost their lives and dozens more were injured inside a temple in India when the roof of a stepwell collapsed due to heavy footfall on Thursday.

The incident took place at the Beleshwar Mahadev Jhulelal temple in central India’s Indore, Madhya Pradesh. Local officials said a massive crowd of pilgrims were at the temple for the Hindu festival of Ram Navami.

“We have rescued 18 people, 35 have been found dead and 16 are injured,” Ilayaraja T, a top local government official, was quoted as saying by Reuters.

So far, a team of 140 people have been deployed by the state government to help with the search and rescue operation. It includes at least 75 army personnel as well.

A senior police official from Indore Pawan Sharma told local media that out of the 18, 16 are currently undergoing treatment at a local hospital for their injuries. He said that the other “two are doing fine”.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences to the families of those dead at the temple: “Extremely pained by the mishap in Indore. Spoke to CM Shivraj Chouhan ji and took an update on the situation. The state government is spearheading rescue and relief work at a quick pace. My prayers [are] with all those affected and their families.”

Chief minister of the state Mr Chouhan has launched a probe into the incident that led to the deaths. He has asked the local officials in Indore to investigate the cause of the collapse of the roof of the stepwell inside the temple compound.