Distressed to know loss of lives due to Tirupati stampede: President Droupadi Murmu

President Droupadi Murmu. File Pic

President Droupadi Murmu extended condolences to the bereaved families of the Tirupati stampede incident in Andhra Pradesh, in which six people were killed and 40 others injured.

"Distressed to know that a stampede in Tirupati led to loss of life of many devotees," Murmu said in a post on social media platform X (Formerly Twitter) on Thursday morning.

"I extend my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families and pray for speedy recovery of the injured," the post added.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu who had condoled the deaths following the incident is due to meet the families of the deceased later in the day.

As many as six people lost their lives and several others were injured after a stampede broke out near Vishnu Niwasam close to the Tirumala Srivari Vaikuntha Dwara ticketing counter, during the distribution of 'darshan' tokens.

Earlier on Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed deep sorrow over the loss of lives and stated that the state government is providing all possible assistance to the incident victims.

Vaikunta Dwara Darshan is scheduled to be held at the Tirumala Sri Venkateswara Temple from January 10 to 19. It allows devotees to pass through the sacred gate to receive Lord Venkateswara's blessings.

The TTD announced that offline tokens for darshan would be issued from today, with nine token distribution centres set up in Tirupati.

Since Wednesday morning, devotees from several parts of the country have been arriving in large numbers to collect tokens but, by the end of the day, a heavy crowd was observed at all the centres, leading to congestion in those areas.

Andhra CM Naidu calls review meeting today after six people killed in Tirupati stampede incident

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has called a review meeting on Thursday after six people were killed in the Tirupati stampede incident a day earlier, a Telugu Desam Party (TDP) spokesperson said, reported ANI.

CM Chandrababu Naidu is also due to meet the families of the deceased later in the day.

TDP National Spokesperson Prem kumar Jain stressed that the state government is taking steps to prevent Tirupati stampede-like incidents, reported ANI.

(With inputs from ANI)