Chhatarpur, July 8
In a tragic incident, a woman lost her life after the wall of a "dhaba" (eatery) collapsed at the Bageshwar Dham premises in Garha village of Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur district in the night between Monday and Tuesday, officials said.
The victim, identified as Anita Devi Kharwar (40), wife of Raju and a resident of Adalhat village in Mirzapur district of Uttar Pradesh, died on the spot after being buried under the debris.
She was visiting the Bageshwar Dham with her family to celebrate Guru Purnima, scheduled for July 10.
The family had been sleeping in the dhaba when the collapse occurred.
Twelve other devotees sustained injuries in the incident.
According to the police, nine of the injured are from Uttar Pradesh, one from Uttarakhand, and two from West Bengal.
Spiritual leader Dhirendra Krishna Shastri, popularly known as Bageshwar Dham Sarkar, has appealed to people on social media platform X to stay at home and celebrate "Paduka Pujan" on July 10.
Four of the more seriously injured individuals have been referred to Gajra Raja Medical College Hospital in Gwalior for advanced treatment, while seven others with minor injuries are being treated at the Chhatarpur District Hospital.
The injured victims include Munshilal Kashyap (72) from Sailanpur, Pilah; Poonam Devi Kharwar (38) and Priya Kumari Kharwar (17) from Jongwa, Mirzapur; Veena Devi Kashyap (50) from Sujanpur, Bareilly; Manju Devi Kurmi (40) and Arvind Kumar Patel (17) from Narayanpur, Mirzapur; Anshika Kumari Kahar (18) and Namvar Prasad (42) from Jogwan, Mirzapur; and Sachin Kashyap (28) from Shahjahanpur, all hailing from Uttar Pradesh.
Others injured are Kaushal Saini (18) from Roorkee, Haridwar (Uttarakhand), and Gulabchand Sahu (55) and Dhaneshwari Devi Sahu (48) from Hawara-2, Howrah (West Bengal).
Police officials said that an investigation into the cause of the wall collapse is underway.
They also confirmed that the state government will extend compensation to the family of the deceased.
Chhatarpur Chief Medical and Health Officer, R.P. Gupta, confirmed the referral of the four critical patients to Gwalior.
This is the second such mishap to occur near Bageshwar Dham in recent days.
On July 3, a tent collapsed within the premises of the spiritual site.
One devotee died after being struck on the head by an iron beam, and eight others were injured in the resulting stampede.
Meanwhile, Dhirendra Krishna Shastri continues to draw massive crowds at the revered Bageshwar Dham in Chhatarpur.
Known for his impassioned advocacy of Sanatan Dharma and his charismatic discourses, Dhirendra Krishna Shastri recently celebrated his 29th birthday by urging devotees to donate bricks for a cancer hospital instead of bringing gifts