Bihar: 8 women devotees killed in stampede at temple in Nalanda

In Bihar, at least eight women devotees were killed and 12 others sustained injuries following a stampede triggered by overcrowding at the Sheetla Mata Temple under Deepnagar police station of Nalanda on Tuesday morning.The stampede took place at Mata Sheetla Temple in Maghra Village, which is nearly five kilometres from Bihar Sharif in Nalanda district. As this was the last Tuesday of the month of Chaitra, a massive crowd of devotees had gathered at the temple.Being the last Tuesday of the Chaitra month, the turnout was significantly higher than usual. The incident spiralled when the devotees were trying to escape the stampede. Two of the deceased have been identified as Rita Devi (50), wife of Dinesh Rajak, and Rekha Devi (45), wife of Kamlesh Prasad, a resident of Mathurapur Noorsarai.

#BREAKING

बिहार के नालंदा स्थित शीतला मंदिर में अत्यधिक भीड़ होने के कारण भगदड़ हो गई जिससे कई लोग दब गए है।

हादसे में अबतक 8 लोगों की मौत हो गई है और दर्जन से अधिक लोग जख्मी हुए है। #Bihar #Nalanda #Stampede #NalandaStampede pic.twitter.com/zROA4m5Qy8

— Ravi Pandey???????? (@ravipandey2643) March 31, 2026

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar has expressed his condolences over the deaths of devotees in the stampede that occurred at the Sheetla Devi Temple in Bihar Sharif, Nalanda district. The Chief Minister stated that he is deeply saddened and heartbroken by this incident, the Chief Minister's office said in a statement. The Chief Minister has announced a financial assistance of Rs 4 lakh from the Disaster Relief Fund for the families who have lost a loved one and another Rs 2 lakh from the Chief Minister's fund. Bihar chief secretary Pratyaya Amrit has ordered a probe into the incident, and asked the Patna divisional commissioner and the range Inspector General to investigate the incident and file a report.