Indore temple tragedy: Death toll mounts to 35

Bhopal, March 31 (IANS) With the recovery of more bodies, the death toll in Madhya Pradesh’s Baleshwar Mahadev temple tragedy rose to 35, while one girl is reportedly missing, Indore collector Illaiaraja T. said on Friday.

Fourteen people have been rescued till now, he added.

Search operation for the missing girl is underway. “Two people who were rescued on Thursday, have been discharged after treatment from hospital,” he stated.

As many as 75 Indian Army jawans and 70 SDRF personnel joined the rescue operation around Thursday midnight, 12 hours after the tragedy.

The Army had to be pressed into service as continuous water seepage in the stepwell was impacting the rescue operation, the Collector said.

Since the stepwell is very old, it was filled with a lot of silt besides other m material. But, the problem of seepage was the most challenging, he added.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and state Home Minister Narottam Mishra have left from Bhopal to Indore early this morning, as per sources.

The incident occurred at Baleshwar Mahadev temple on Thursday afternoon after a concrete slab over the old stepwell, on which devotees were offering prayers, caved in, due to which around 30 people fell into the well.

Devotees thronged the temple in large numbers to offer prayers on the occasion of Ram Navami.

A magistral injury has been ordered in the matter.
IANS