Visakhapatnam: Seven devotees were killed and one injured after a wall collapsed near the queue lines at the famous Simhachalam temple in the Eastern Ghats, Visakhapatnam, early on Wednesday morning. The dead included four members of the same family.
The temple’s hereditary trustee, former Union minister Pusapati Ashok Gajapati Raju, and his family were in the temple offering prayers when tragedy struck but they suffered no harm.
Thousands of devotees from across Andhra Pradesh had gathered at the temple dedicated to Lord Varaha Narasimha Swamy to witness the annual Chandanotsavam. All through the year the idol is covered in sandal paste, and only during Chandanotsavam does the deity give darshan in His original form, attracting thousands of devotees.
Tragedy struck between 3 am and 3.15 am when a newly built wall, meant to act as a barrier against landslides, collapsed on devotees standing in queues. The 20 feet long and 2.5 feet wide wall caved in after a heavy 40-minute downpour accompanied by thunderstorms and fierce gales. The wall was built only last week.
State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) jawans retrieved six bodies by removing debris with their bare hands and also rescued two people. They did not have any equipment at the time.
Devotees alleged the wall collapsed because of substandard construction. They said from the debris it seemed as if it contained excessive sand and insufficient cement. The wall was also built without supporting pillars or beams on the ground.
This is the first ever tragedy at the centuries old temple during Chandanotsavam. Though there have been minor stampedes in the past, there were no fatalities.
State home minister V Anita said, “Action will be taken against those responsible for the accident.” Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu held a teleconference with ministers Anam Ramnarayaa Reddy, Anita, Dola Bala Veeranjaneya Swamy, Anagani Satya Prasad, Visakhapatnam MP M Bharat, Gajapati Raju, and others.
There was tension at the King George Hospital mortuary for almost five hours as family members and relatives of Pilla Umamahesh and Sailaja, a software engineer couple, did not agree to a postmortem unless the govt announced higher compensation and a govt job to a family member.
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The Andhra Pradesh govt appointed a three-man committee to look into the cause of the tragedy. It includes municipal administration principal secretary Suresh Kumar, Eagle Force chief Ake Ravikrishna, and irrigation engineer-in-chief Venkateswara Rao. CM N Chandrababdu Naidu announced an ex gratia of Rs 25 lakh each for the kin of the deceased. One member of the family will also receive a govt job. The injured will receive Rs 3 lakh each.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the deceased’s families and Rs 50,000 for the injured from the PM relief fund.
List of the dead
HCL employee Pilla Umamaheswara Rao (30), his wife Pilla Sailaja (27) of Chandrampalem, his mother-in-law Pyla Venkata Ratnam (45), and a relative G Mahalakshmi (65)
K Manikantha Eswara Sesha Rao (29) and Pathi Durga Prasad Naidu (30) from Korlapativaripalem in Ambajipeta, East Godavari district
Yedla Venkata Rao (58) of Adavivaram Gurukul School area in Vizag
Pyla Praveen of Arilova, the injured person, is receiving treatment in VIIMS hospital.

Kolkata: It was a traumatic week for 17-year-old Subhangi Guha, who lost her father, Samir Guha, in the terrorist attack at Baisaran Valley in Pahalgam, Kashmir. Seeing her father being shot in front of her eyes made her numb.
On Wednesday morning, however, she said she found a purpose again to fulfil the aspirations of her father, who stood by her and supported her in several key decisions of life. Subhangi, who appeared for her ISC board exam this year, expected to score more than 90%. But she had to settle at 87% with her Psychology and Political Science scores pulling back her percentage a bit. She was in the Arts stream.
Sabari Guha, her mother, said Subhangi has already decided not to let the marks deter her ambition – she wants to pursue psychology honours at Loreto College. “At present, she wants to concentrate on her studies. Her dreams, she feels, will be fulfilled once she concentrates on her higher education. As of now, she wants to focus all her energy on this. We hope we will be getting help from the administration so that she can fulfil her dreams,” said Sabari.
On Wednesday, TOI visited her residence and found Subhangi speaking over the phone. “The results upset her a bit as she had higher expectations. But what is important is to look into the future, and she has already started that process,” said one of her relatives. Just like a week ago, several relatives gathered at the Guhas’ Sakherbazar residence, closing ranks and showing their solidarity with the family on this special day. Neighbours too dropped by.
“Subhangi has always been a bright student. We have decided to pool in whatever resources we have locally to ensure that her dream is fulfilled,” said Shankar Roy, the local club president who visited the Guha residence on Wednesday morning.
Sabari, however, appealed to everyone not to spread fake news about her family, which is trying to come to terms with the loss and trauma. “Social media and even media outlets have claimed that we were paid a death claim settlement worth Rs 1.7 crore. This is completely baseless. An officer did visit us, but he clicked photos in our flat without our consent. We have received no cheque,” said Sabari.
The mother and daughter spoke to NIA sleuths earlier, with Sabari reporting that a few people suddenly surrounded them. According to her, they ordered everyone to lie down on the ground, and each of them had a gun. Out of fear, they complied, and then the attackers selectively shot her husband and a few others.
Sabari said they heard two gunshots. Initially, they did not understand what was happening, but soon, they faced gunmen in army fatigues.
Kolkata: It was a traumatic week for 17-year-old Subhangi Guha, who lost her father, Samir Guha, in the terrorist attack at Baisaran Valley in Pahalgam, Kashmir. Seeing her father being shot in front of her eyes made her numb.
On Wednesday morning, however, she said she found a purpose again to fulfil the aspirations of her father, who stood by her and supported her in several key decisions of life. Subhangi, who appeared for her ISC board exam this year, expected to score more than 90%. But she had to settle at 87% with her Psychology and Political Science scores pulling back her percentage a bit. She was in the Arts stream.
Sabari Guha, her mother, said Subhangi has already decided not to let the marks deter her ambition – she wants to pursue psychology honours at Loreto College. “At present, she wants to concentrate on her studies. Her dreams, she feels, will be fulfilled once she concentrates on her higher education. As of now, she wants to focus all her energy on this. We hope we will be getting help from the administration so that she can fulfil her dreams,” said Sabari.
On Wednesday, TOI visited her residence and found Subhangi speaking over the phone. “The results upset her a bit as she had higher expectations. But what is important is to look into the future, and she has already started that process,” said one of her relatives. Just like a week ago, several relatives gathered at the Guhas’ Sakherbazar residence, closing ranks and showing their solidarity with the family on this special day. Neighbours too dropped by.
“Subhangi has always been a bright student. We have decided to pool in whatever resources we have locally to ensure that her dream is fulfilled,” said Shankar Roy, the local club president who visited the Guha residence on Wednesday morning.
Sabari, however, appealed to everyone not to spread fake news about her family, which is trying to come to terms with the loss and trauma. “Social media and even media outlets have claimed that we were paid a death claim settlement worth Rs 1.7 crore. This is completely baseless. An officer did visit us, but he clicked photos in our flat without our consent. We have received no cheque,” said Sabari.
The mother and daughter spoke to NIA sleuths earlier, with Sabari reporting that a few people suddenly surrounded them. According to her, they ordered everyone to lie down on the ground, and each of them had a gun. Out of fear, they complied, and then the attackers selectively shot her husband and a few others.
Sabari said they heard two gunshots. Initially, they did not understand what was happening, but soon, they faced gunmen in army fatigues.