HATHRAS, India: Survivors of India’s deadliest stampede in more than a decade recalled on Wednesday the horror of being crushed at a vastly overcrowded Hindu religious gathering where 121 people were killed. A police report said more than 250,000 people attended the event in northern India’s Uttar Pradesh state, more than triple the 80,000 for whom organizers had permission. “After the event ended, everyone wanted to exit quickly, and that is what led to the stampede,” Sandeep said. Religious gatherings in India have a grim track record of deadly incidents caused by poor crowd management and safety lapses. In 2008, 224 pilgrims were killed and more than 400 were injured in a stampede at a hilltop temple in the northern city of Jodhpur.
