BBC investigation reveals hidden deaths at India Festival Crush

Warning: The story contains distressing details

BBC investigation did not reveal that Indian officials were quietly paid to pay many people than they claimed to Deadly People Crush on Kumbh MelaA Hindu festival that is the greatest gathering of the world’s religion.

The official death is 37, but the BBC has found 26 additional cases where families have received a fee, and 18 more deaths where there is no charge.

On 25 March, a team of plain wearing police officers from Northern Uttar Uttar Pradesh (up) state of adjacent bundled money.

The team visited Gopalogj City, where they met the 62-year-old Tara Devi family. They gave more than 500,000 rupees ($ 5,758; £ 4,291) in the money of his son, Dhananjay Gond, and asked him to record a video statement.

In the video, Dihanjay introduced himself, saying: “My mother of Devi and I went to Kumbh Mela for a holy dip. My mother died. We have been killed.”

Dhananjay said his mother was killed by Crowd Crush In the city of prayer on 29 January.

UP Government has not released an official crush victims list. Tara Devi’s son says she told her the money she got was the first install of 2.5m rupee officially promised families. Dhananjay says he has not received the remaining 2m rupees.

The UP Government says that each of the family 35 victims (in 37 killed, a victim remained unknown, and the other had no legal heir). A three-member judicial judicial commission has been set to examine the event and submit a report within a month has tenure of this given.

BBC, however, found another family given a 2.5m rupees check. For the other 35 victims, the fee is transferred to relatives bank accounts.

Apart from this, the BBC found 26 cases – including Tara Devi – where police paid 500,000 rupees of money in people’s homes.

In many cases, officials have family families who regret health issues for death, despite their insulting that their relatives died in the crush. (UP Government is typically unable to pay for the natural death during the Kumbh, made every 12 years.)

The BBC also confirms 18 deaths where the payment is free (excluded in case mentioned above where there is no legal heir).

This evidence has also been found in four separate incidents to claim on 29 January, a Called Total Sangam Sangi, Ganga, Yamuna and Mythical Saraswati.

In weeks after the crush of the Kumbh, the BBC meets over 100 families in 11 states in India, claiming their relatives died in tragedy. It confirms 82 killed in general with concrete evidence, excluding cases that are lacking proof.

Some families hold post-mortems, morgue slips, death certificates, or pictures and videos as proof. The BBC Cross-Cross Cross Cross Phetoredpaper reports and talks with district reporters to keep track of where bodies have been received, these places visit.

The BBC interviewed families and eyewitnesses to reconstruct timelines for each case – when the victims left for the Holy Dip, the time of the crush, Nearby landmarks, the distance from the bathing site and the immediate aftermath.

From detailed accounts, clear patterns emerged, carrying the identity of the four crush locations, Jhusi side, Airavat Marg, and Mukti Marg Chaurara near Kalpavrisha Gate.

Most of the total 2.5m-rupee compensation cases list death location as “Ward No. 7, Fort Cantt, Sangam Nose.

On the contrary, cases received 500,000 rupees mostly discussed “Sector-20 or Sector-21, Kumbh Mela Area, Jhusi”. Some families claim that their relatives also died near the nose of Sangam, but their certificates were mistook Jhusi – likely to pour the scope of the tragedy there.

About 18 families who have not received any fee, no one is a common thread.

For example, in a crush area, BBC recognizes five bodies through pictures and the numbers released by post-death formalities. Of these, families of three victims received 500,000 rupees of money, while the other two did not receive. Some families have pictures from the crush day showing the bodies of their relatives, but these deaths are not recognized by the government.

The BBC often attempted to contact government officials, emailing the Information Department and District Magistrate. Despite the promises of the district’s office Magistrate, no calls were arranged. Efforts to reach the police chief have no longer answered, while the police commissioner in the amporiation during the incident, Tarun Gaba, and Mela Officer Vijic Vijay Kiran Anat refused to answer questions.

The BBC also finds evidence of deaths of crushes that occur in locations other than Sangam nose, which is recognized by the government by providing payment.

In the UP’s Jaunpur, Dharmbir Rajhar received 500,000 rupees each for his wife’s death and daughter-in-law of Airavat Marg Crush.

A BBC shot video on 29 January showing family sitting with both bodies on site. Back to home, Raj shows: Xhar the bundles of money and said, “The Government promised 2.5m Rupees, but the police only give 500,000 rupees each and left.”

The police also traveled hundreds of kilometers in the Paschim Bardhaman of West Bengal, where they handed over 500,000 rupees to Vinod Ruidas family.

Not all families accept the value, however. In Bihar, the relatives of the Devi relatives have been rejected. They told BBC that they refused to “sign false documents”.

The BBC also learned at least five families lost their relatives near Kalpavrisha Gate, about 3-4km from Nos nose.

Kusum Devi, Panne Lal Sahni’s wife, saying that her husband died at 8:00 am January 29th. “People walked into his body. I sat on the day with his corpse for up to 4:00. Never gave us water,” he said. The family has received 500,000 money rupees.

Relatives of all five people who died near Kalpavrisha door, have the same narrative stories – they sit with bodies from morning to night.

Over time, more families are primarily claiming their relatives die in crush but they have not received payment.

Among 18 was Meena Pandey from Sultanpur, who was traveling to Kumbh with her husband, and neighbor Archa Singh. Archinana recalls sitting with Meena’s body at the crush site to 3:00 – seven hours after crush.

Despite claiming 2,750 AI-AI-AI-AI-begins, deoneds, ambulations, no help, relatives said.

Afternoon the body began to decay, says the ark.

“We have no choice but to bring it to our car’s house.”

Like Meena Pandey’s family, Shyamlal Gond’s relatives from Deoria are still waiting for payment.

His son, Bhagirathi Gond, worked as a daily wage in Bengaluru. After the crush, he traveled in prayer that seeks his father, and reached the hospital on 3 February.

According to a slip from the hospital, Shyamlal Gond was carried by the dead at 10.02 local hours on January 29.

“My father is listed as not recognized. To keep records, they (hospital staff) get a body file in the situation it is found.”

He added, “It is difficult to recognize him through the picture. After the fall, his head was broken, the chest pushed down.”

Bhagirathi said hospital staff do not give him a death certificate or any other role.

“They told me to take the body, but I said I would do it just when some official approach,” he said.

It took four months before he got the death certificate. But he was still waiting for the fee at his loss.

“The government has never known my father’s death in the crush.”

Follow BBC News India to Instagram,, YouTube, Twitter and Fickook.