A 70-year-old woman was killed, and seven others were injured in a crowd surge during the inauguration of the Navgrah Temple in Dabra, in Gwalior district of Madhya Pradesh, on Tuesday.

The stampede took place when a large group of women assembled near the Dabra stadium in the morning hours for a ‘Kalash Yatra’ organised as part of the temple inauguration ceremonies.

News agency PTI quoted Gwalior Collector Ruchika Chauhan as saying that the trouble began while sacred pots were being handed out to participants.

“During the distribution of the Kalash (sacred pots), a scuffle broke out. A 70-year-old woman was crushed in the crowd and died later," Chauhan said.

She added that the other injured included six women and a girl.

According to the collector, three of them were shifted to hospitals in Gwalior for treatment, while the remaining four are being treated in Dabra.

Chauhan also said that calm has since been restored at the site and that officials were ensuring proper arrangements to prevent any further problems.

Senior police officers gave a similar account of how the situation spiralled out of control.

Gwalior Range Inspector General Arvind Saxena said the rush at the distribution point triggered a dangerous crush.

“During the distribution of the Kalash, many women rushed forward, leading to a stampede-like situation. One woman was crushed to death," Saxena said.

Eyewitnesses told authorities that the crowd had grown very large and that some women began pushing one another, which disrupted the arrangements and contributed to the chaos.

The district administration said that despite the incident, the ‘Kalash Yatra’ later moved along its planned route and reached the Navgrah Temple without any further untoward incident.

Source: News18