Wai, Maharashtra
Wai also known as Wai Phawadi or Dakshin Kashi is a city near Pune, Satara District in the Maharashtra state of India. It is next to the bank of the Krishna river. It is famous for its temples and ghats(banks) on the Krishna river. The famous Dholya Ganapati temple is situated on its Ganapati Ghat. Its STD code is 02167. Recently popular as a destination for shooting of films such as "Swades", "Gangajal" and "Omkara".
Stampede
Wai was the site of a stampede at the Mandher Devi temple on 25 January, 2005 when some of the devotees, who had gathered on the auspicious occasion of Shakambhari Purnima (full moon), slipped and fell at the entrance of the sanctum sanctorum because of the excess oil near the Deepmaal (lamp tower) and coconut water on the floor, creating panic among the 2 lakh people present there. This was a result of the approach being made narrower by the presence of temporary stalls set up. Subsequently, gas cylinders in these stalls began exploding. Eyewitnesses reported that about 25 cylinders exploded covering the area in dense smoke. [1] [2]
Other sources state that an electrical short circuit and resultant explosion in a transformer with a loud bang caused panic among the devotees leading to the stampede. Impatient devotees broke into violence and torched nearby mandaps and pandals (temporary structures built at sites of occasions). At least 400 people, most of them women and children, were killed and over 450 injured in the stampede. [1]
References
External links
- News stories following the stampede