Moments before a deadly stampede at the world's biggest religious gathering in India, Hindu devotees queuing to take a spiritual bath in a river said they pleaded with police to open barricaded routes to thin out a surging crowd.

At least 17 people were killed and many more injured in a stampede at India's Maha Kumbh festival, the world's largest religious gathering, a doctor at a government hospital said, as tens of thousands of pilgrims rushed to dip in sacred river waters during the Hindu event.

STORY: More than 36 hours after a deadly stampede at India's Maha Kumbh Mela festival claimed dozens of lives, distraught relatives frantically searched hospitals and mortuaries for missing loved ones.

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A delegation of 73 foreign diplomats visited the Maha Kumbh Mela, praising the arrangements and expressing their happiness.

The Hindu festival that turned deadly in northern India on Wednesday is a religious gathering with deep spiritual meaning for devotees who come by the millions to take a cleansing dip in waters they consider sacred.

More than seven people were killed and around 10 injured in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in northern India on Wednesday, said an official, as tens of millions gathered to take a holy dip on the most auspicious day of the six-week Hindu festival.

A police guard who did not want to be identified said a second stampede had occurred but "help reached in time" and the situation was contained. Senior police officers did not res

A tragic stampede at the Maha Kumbh festival in northern India has left several people dead and many others injured.