When unbridled devotion led to disaster: Remembering the 1954 Kumbh Mela stampede

History has since repeated itself: deadly stampedes person struck the Kumbh Mela successful 1840, 1906, and 1954 astatine Allahabad, successful 1986 astatine Haridwar, successful 2003 astatine Nashik, successful 2013 astatine the Allahabad railway station, and again successful 2025. While Maclean describes specified tragedies arsenic “sporadic successful the past of the Kumbh, not invariable”, her survey of the spiritual lawsuit serves arsenic a stark reminder that dependable readying and medication person often been the lone barriers betwixt devotion and disaster.

The 1954 stampede

The 1954 Kumbh Mela held successful Allahabad (now Prayagraj) from January 14 to March 3 was the archetypal Kumbh Mela aft India gained independence. This monolithic spiritual gathering attracted implicit 5 cardinal pilgrims, including salient governmental figures, for 40 days of spiritual observance. However, the lawsuit is infamous for the devastating stampede connected February 3 that resulted successful the deaths of hundreds of devotees.

Between 8 and 9 americium connected February 3, 1954 – connected Mauni Amavasya – the assemblage power measures astatine the Kumbh Mela collapsed nether immense pressure. Maclean describes however pilgrims continued to determination into an already overcrowded area, straining the narrow, muddy pathways made slick by caller rain. Regulations meant to support roads and pontoon bridges one-way broke down, turning them into chaotic, two-way thoroughfares. Despite an statement to halt trains astatine the Sangam Railway Station, pilgrims continued arriving en masse, she says.

The last trigger for the disaster, she mentions, was a surge of devotees breaking done barriers successful an effort to scope a procession of sadhus and beatified men from assorted akharas. This abrupt propulsion caused radical astatine the beforehand to autumn implicit beggars and others squatting successful their path. Within minutes, the fallen were trampled.

According to the authoritative enquiry committee report, arsenic cited by Maclean, hopeless pilgrims attempting to flight inadvertently ran into the Naga procession of the Mahanirvani Akhara.  “According to the Inquiry Committee’s report, pilgrims with obscurity other to spell past made hopeless ingressions into the process extremity of the stationary procession of the nagas of the Mahanirvani akhara, who turned their trishuls and chimtas against the nationalist successful response, and a stampede ensued,” Maclean writes.

She further states however eyewitness accounts described a country of terror: bodies piled atop 1 another, pilgrims clambering onto the shoulders of those successful beforehand to debar being trampled, and a sheer deficiency of abstraction to move. Hundreds died astatine the scene, their bodies mislaid beneath the surge of humanity.

The Amrita Bazar Patrika reported that these stampedes reflected “administrative bungling” and warned of further casualties if readying failures continued. A glimpse astatine the Kumbh Mela Traffic Plan map, arsenic per Maclean, confirmed the precariousness of the mishap site: it was a convergence constituent of 5 roads, a ramp, and a pontoon span — an mishap waiting to happen.

Adding to the chaos was the beingness of a high-profile governmental delegation. Among the dignitaries contiguous connected February 3 were past President Rajendra Prasad, past Uttar Pradesh politician K M Munshi, and past main curate Govind Ballabh Pant. A conception of the media aboriginal criticised the medication for focusing much connected VIP information –  peculiarly ensuring the President’s ceremonial dip astatine the Sangam – portion neglecting the information of the masses. The President aboriginal visited the injured astatine the infirmary successful Kumbh Nagri and issued a condolence statement.

Then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, who visited the Mela a time earlier, “paused to dip his manus into the ineffable waters of the sangam”, Maclean writes. Nehru aboriginal said that VIPs should debar attending the Mela.

Investigations, cover-ups, and nationalist outrage

In the days pursuing the tragedy, the UP authorities initiated an enquiry into the Kumbh calamity and appointed a three-member committee comprising Kamalakant Varma, erstwhile Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court; Dr Panna Lal, a erstwhile advisor to the UP government; and A C Mitra, past main technologist of the Irrigation Department. The committee exonerated the authorities and pinned the blasted chiefly connected the Mahanirvani Akhara.

However, nationalist dissatisfaction with the government’s handling of the catastrophe led to the enactment of an autarkic Kumbh calamity ‘fact-finding committee’ by salient Allahabad citizens.

Maclean notes that the enquiry concluded that “the work for the catastrophe belongs to the ministers, different important individuals, and the mela authorities. In the committee’s opinion, this incidental was not a abrupt accident, and radical could person been saved from it. … But the authorities did not ore connected serving the people, but tried to delight the ruling enactment and truthful thousands of innocents died.”

The committee besides alleged a authorities cover-up, arguing that galore victims were ne'er identified—especially beggars and widows who had nary families to assertion their bodies. A photograph published successful their study showed decomposed corpses floating downriver weeks aft the tragedy, suggesting bodies had been dumped to support authoritative decease tolls low.

While the government’s enquiry admitted to immoderate administrative failures, it dismissed allegations that VIP beingness had contributed to the catastrophe arsenic “pure imagination.” Ironically, Maclean notes that past Union Home Minister Dr K N Katju was praised for bathing astatine the Sangam humbly, similar an “ordinary pilgrim”.

She further observes that during World War II, successful 1942, the British authorities had severely restricted attendance to the Kumbh Mela astatine Prayagraj, fearing a Japanese attack. Many Indians who had been incapable to be the 1942 Kumbh viewed the 1954 gathering arsenic a uncommon accidental to fulfil their spiritual duty, she notes. This, coupled with a recently autarkic authorities perceived arsenic much supportive of spiritual gatherings, resulted successful an unprecedented influx of pilgrims, says Maclean.

Authorities failed to expect the sheer standard of the event. The catastrophe was aboriginal attributed to a unreserved of “fanatical” pilgrims seeking to bathe astatine the astir auspicious moment, portion different accounts placed the blasted connected convulsive sadhus. Maclean argues that the catastrophe was yet caused by a operation of administrative miscalculations, mediocre assemblage control, and infrastructural limitations.

In 1954, it was estimated that 1 successful each 80 Indians attended the Kumbh Mela. Today, attendance has risen, yet small seems to person been learned from history.