New Delhi, 8 January (H.S.): On Wednesday evening, a tragic incident occurred at the distribution of tokens for Vaikuntha Dwara Darshan in Tirupathi, where six devotees lost their lives and four others were injured in a stampede.

Reports suggest that some of the deceased had come from Salem in Tamil Nadu to visit the holy temple of Lord Venkateshwara. The Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam (TTD) Board had set up three centers to issue tokens for the darshan, with a goal of distributing 1.2 lakh tokens in three days.

However, the rush of devotees from different states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Telangana caused chaos on Wednesday evening as they gathered to obtain their tokens early the next morning.

To avoid overcrowding on the roads, TTD officials had made the devotees wait inside Padmavathi Park until they were let out in queues to get their tokens at designated centers. Unfortunately, a stampede occurred at Vishnu Nivasam and Bairagipatteda Ramanaidu School, resulting in casualties and injuries. The injured were immediately taken to nearby hospitals for treatment, including Sri Venkateshwara Ramnarayan Ruia General Hospital and Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences (SVIMS).

(More details will be added)

Hindusthan Samachar / Indrani Sarkar