27 pilgrims have died and many more wounded in a stampede on the banks of a holy river in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.
At least 27 people have been killed and 34 others injured in a stampede during a Hindu religious bathing festival in the banks of a holy river in southern India, a government official has said.
The Hindu pilgrims had gathered to take a dip in the Godavari river at the start of the Maha Pushkaralu festival.
The stampede occurred at 08:00 (02:30 GMT) in the Rajahmundry district.
Nearly 24 million pilgrims are expected to take part in the 12-day festival. Pilgrims believe that taking a bath in the river will rid them of their sins.
"The incident happened as the first set of worshippers were coming out of the river after taking a dip and then got in the way of others who wanted to be in the water at an auspicious time," senior police official stated.
V Satyanarayana, a pilgrim who was at the site, said the stampede lasted nearly 20 minutes.
"It was a frightening situation, with women and children crying for help," he told Associated Press. "The policemen on duty were helpless and it took more than an hour to bring the situation under control."
Deadly stampedes are fairly common during Indian religious festivals, where large crowds gather in small areas with few safety or crowd control measures.
In October 2013, a stampede in Madhya Pradesh state in central India killed more than 110 people, mostly women and children.