Hyderabad (TIP) Jul 14: At least 27 people were killed and dozens injured on Tuesday in a stampede during the mahapushkaram, a Hindu religious bathing festival on the Godavari river bank, in Andhra Pradesh.

The tragedy occurred at the same ghat or steps leading to the river where Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu took a dip early this morning in the Rajamundhry district. Pilgrims reportedly rushed towards one of the gates that allows access to the river banks; a group of women slipped, said officials, causing the stampede.

“The incident happened as the first set of worshippers was 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,” said senior police officer A. Srinivasan Rao to news agency AFP.

Some pilgrims trying to retrieve their shoes which had fallen off in the rush triggered the stampede as tens of thousands of people pushed forward to bathe in the Godavari on the first day of the festival, police said.

Some witnesses said several devotees tried to climb a wall along the popular pushkar ghat while others pushed forward, triggering a stampede.

Chief Minister Naidu, at noon, was in a police control room to oversee the arrangements for the massive rush of devotees. “When I was leaving, I saw huge crowds and asked barricades to be put up… despite the best arrangements, this happened,” he said to local news channels.

“Maha Pushkaralu” is a religious festival that celebrates rivers and draws huge crowds in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. It occurs once every 144 years, based on astronomical configurations; a smaller version or Pushkaralu is held once every 12 years. More than 10 million people are expected to attend the festival over the next 12 days.