Press Trust Of India
Mina, Sept 24: At least 717 people, including four Indians, were killed and more than 860 injured in a stampede Thursday during Haj here, in the second worst ever tragedy to hit the annual pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
The four Indians killed in the tragedy during the symbolic stoning of the devil, included a woman and a volunteer, Indian consulate officials in Jeddah said. Some Indians were also injured.
The Saudi civil defence authority said 717 pilgrims from different nationalities were killed and 863 were injured in the stampede. A sudden surge in the number of pilgrims heading to Jamarat for the symbolic stoning of the devil by throwing pebbles against three stone walls resulted in the stampede at 9 am local time (1130 IST), said the civil defence authorty.
The state-run Saudi Press Agency said the stampede occurred at the intersection of two streets leading to Jamarat, about 5 km from Mecca.
Among the Indians killed was man from Kerala identified as Mohammed from Kodungaloor in Thrissur district, Kerala’s rural development and non-resident Keralite affairs minister KC Joseph said in Thiruvananthapuram.
The deceased had gone for the Haj through a privately-sponsored group, the minister said. A woman from the state was among those injured, he said.
A woman pilgrim from Hyderabad identified as Bibi Jaan was also killed in the stampede, said SA Shukoor, special officer of the Telangana State Haj Committee.
Jaan had gone on the pilgrimage with her husband and two other relatives on September 2. She was caught in the stampede and died at a hospital in Mina, said the Haj committee official.
Two Indians from Assam were among the injured and have been admitted to hospital.
This is the second worst tragedy to hit the Haj after 1990 when a staggering 1,426 pilgrims were killed in a stampede that took place inside a tunnel leading to holy sites.
Indian Haj mission doctors were deployed in all government hospitals in Mina and Mecca.
In New Delhi, President Pranab Mukherjee condoled the tragic incident and loss of lives.
In his message to King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the President said, “I am deeply saddened by the tragic incident at Mina Thursday, during which a large number of Haj pilgrims lost their lives and several suffered injuries. On behalf of the government and the people of India and on my own behalf, I express my sincere condolences to the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and to the families of the deceased pilgrims,” he said and wished speedy recovery to those injured.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi also expressed deep shock and distress over the deaths and injuries in the stampede. P12
