Chaos erupted at the Tara Mai Devi Temple in Prithvipur tehsil, Niwari district, when a swarm of bees launched a sudden attack on devotees during a sacred havan ritual. The incident on Sunday morning left nine people seriously injured in a panicked stampede.
All the victims hail from Indore and had traveled to the hilltop temple for prayers. Eyewitnesses describe how the smoke rising from the havan fire disturbed a nearby hive, sending bees diving into the crowd. Devotees scattered in fear, leading to the chaotic stampede.
Rescuers quickly rushed the injured to the Community Health Center in Prithvipur. Doctors there sent everyone to Jhansi Medical College for urgent care due to the severity of their wounds. Among them are Babulal, 45; his mother Gomti Bai, 55, whose condition remains critical; Jamuna Prasad, 60; Anita, 38; Umesh, 40; young Kartik and Gori, both 8; and 13-year-old Nitin.
Police say the group first visited Gwalior before heading to the Tara Mai Devi Temple. They finished the havan puja and sat down for prasadam when the bees struck from all sides. “They couldn’t react or even figure out what was happening,” an officer noted.
The temple sits amid dense forests in the Orchha region, a spot famous for its buzzing bee populations. That’s likely what triggered the bee swarm attack during the ritual.
This popular pilgrimage site draws crowds from Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, especially for rituals like this one. The bee attack and temple stampede have sparked worries about safety at large religious gatherings in forested areas like Niwari district.
Local authorities plan to review the situation and could issue guidelines to avoid future mishaps. Temple officials have apologized for the ordeal and pledged to work with police on better devotee protection.
At Jhansi Medical College, medical teams keep a close watch on the injured pilgrims. Police have started probing the full details of the Madhya Pradesh temple incident to prevent repeats.
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