BELAGAVI: The bodies of four devotees from Belagavi, who lost their lives in the stampede at the Maha Kumbh, reached the Delhi airport around noon on Thursday, according to Belagavi district Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Roshan. From Delhi, the bodies will be brought to Belagavi this evening.
Roshan said that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has directed the district administration to receive the bodies upon arrival. Due to lack of time, the post-mortem in Delhi has been canceled, he said. Arrangements are being made to conduct the post-mortem in Belagavi.
Earlier in the day, Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said that senior officers are coordinating the effort to bring back the bodies. “IPS officer Hariram Shankar is coordinating the movement of mortal remains of four people from Kumbh Mela, moving in two ambulances towards Delhi. Special DC, Harsha from Belagavi is reaching Delhi. Both will ensure and also fly with the mortal remains to reach Belagavi this evening”, Krishna Byre Gowda said.
“The 3:20 pm IndiGo flight for the mortal remains and four accompanying family members and officers has also been arranged by the Government of Karnataka. As of now, there is no report of any other injured or hospitalised. However, if directed, the Nodal Officer of Govt of Karnataka, Harshal Boyar, has been asked to take all measures necessary to find out if there are any more injured in any of the hospitals”, he added.
Leaders across the political spectrum expressed condolences on the tragic stampede incident, that occurred in the early hours of Wednesday, killing 30 and injuring several others.
Uttar Pradesh Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Vaibhav Krishna addressed the press and said that 25 bodies have been identified while the rest are yet to be identified. “A total of 30 people have died unfortunately in the stampede that took place at the Mahakumbh at Prayagraj. Twenty-five bodies have been identified and the rest five are yet to be identified”, he added.
Among the deceased, four are from Karnataka, one from Assam and one from Gujarat, the DIG said, adding that 36 people were being treated at a local medical college. (ANI)