PHOTOS: Dozens Killed In India Festival Stampede
At least 32 people have been killed and 15 others injured in
a stampede during an important Hindu festival in India.Indian officials said the accident occurred on Friday near a
public park in the city of Patna in the eastern Bihar state and that the
fatalities were mostly women and children.
Hindu devotees watch an effigy of the Hindu demon king
Ravana, stuffed with fire-crackers, burn
The effigies are filled with firecrackers which contain
phosphorous - a chemical which they believe purifies the atmosphere to combat
illnesses onset by the drop in temperate at the time of year
Dussehra - a festival during which effigies of the demon
king Ravana are burnt to mark the victory of good over evil - draws huge crowds
at the Gandhi Maidan in Patna, the administrative capital of Bihar. Continue below to see photos from the celebration and then the
stampede after the cut.
"We have information that 32 people including women and
children died due to a stampede," Police told AFP news agency. In addition
to the dead, at least 15 people were taken to hospital.
The festival is celebrated on the tenth day of the month of
Ashwin in the Hindu lunisolar calendar, with the previous nine days known as
Maha Navratri
