At least six devotees were killed and 16 others were injured after a portion of an under-construction Hanuman temple collapsed in Maharashtra's Parbhani district on Saturday afternoon.
The incident took place at Yashwadi village on the Manwat road, around 190 kilometres from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
According to police, a section of the roof of the temple's under-construction sabha mandap (assembly hall) gave way at around 3.30 pm when devotees had gathered at the premises.
Officials said at least six people died in the collapse, while rescue teams pulled around 25 people from the debris. Several injured persons were rushed to nearby hospitals for treatment.
Police identified five of the six deceased as Santosh Gadde of Pangra, Akash Surdose from Gangakhed Road in Parbhani, Numesh Agrawal of Jintur, Suraj Kopratkar of Itali, and Shrikrishna Balbhim Gavare of Chinchwadgaon in Wadvani taluka. The identity of the sixth victim was yet to be ascertained at the time of writing.
{{/usCountry}}Police identified five of the six deceased as Santosh Gadde of Pangra, Akash Surdose from Gangakhed Road in Parbhani, Numesh Agrawal of Jintur, Suraj Kopratkar of Itali, and Shrikrishna Balbhim Gavare of Chinchwadgaon in Wadvani taluka. The identity of the sixth victim was yet to be ascertained at the time of writing.
{{/usCountry}}According to authorities the temple had witnessed a larger-than-usual turnout as Saturday is considered auspicious for worshippers of Lord Hanuman.
Police and local administration personnel launched rescue efforts immediately after the collapse, with teams working to ensure no one remained trapped under the rubble.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis expressed grief over the loss of lives and said the injured were receiving medical care.
In a statement, the Chief Minister's Office announced financial assistance of ₹5 lakh each for the families of those who died in the incident.
This is a developing story.
(With inputs from Raju Shinde)