Rest house wall collapses in Bageshwar Dham in MP, one dead

Chhatarpur, July 8 (IANS) Heavy downpour caused yet another tragedy at Bageshwar Dham, the ashram of famous spiritual storyteller Dhirendra Shastri in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur district. One devotee died while nearly a dozen were injured after the wall of an old building they were staying in collapsed early on Tuesday.

The wall that collapsed was part of a dharamshala (rest house) in Bageshwar Dham, where the devotees get shelter for overnight stay at minimum charges.

The devotees were sleeping when the tragic incident happened; they were buried under debris.

Upon receiving information, local area police reached the spot and rescued the persons trapped under debris. Injured persons were rushed to a nearby government-run hospital in Chhatarpur.

During the treatment, one woman succumbed to her injuries, according to information.

The deceased has been identified as Anita Devi (40), a resident of Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh. She had arrived at Bageshwar Dham to offer prayers on Monday.

A senior medical officer in Chhatarpur, Dr R.P. Gupta, confirming the incident, said that nearly 12 people were brought to the district hospital for treatment. One of the patients died during treatment.

"Medical staff is trying to provide the best possible treatment to those injured in the Bageshwar Dham building collapse," Dr Gupta said.

"Today, 11 people came from the Bageshwar Dham. Out of these, one woman died. 2-3 people who were seriously injured have been referred to other hospitals. The rest of the injured people are stable," Doctor Oajh Dosajh told IANS.

"These people came to Bageshwar Dham to offer prayers. Mostly, they hail from Uttar Pradesh. A wall collapsed and all these 11 people were injured," he added.

An injured person, whose sister-in-law lost her life to the incident, told IANS, "We came to Bageshwar Dham to offer our prayers. When we were sleeping in that room, a wall collapsed upon us due to heavy rainfall late at night. My sister-in-law died, and others were injured. We were living in the rooms made for the devotees to rest. They took Rs 200 from us."

"My sister-in-law passed away. My husband is fine, but my daughter's legs are fractured. There were many people there, we cannot say the exact number," another relative of the deceased said.

This is the second tragic incident that occurred at Bageshwar Dham within one week.

Earlier on July 3, a devotee was killed, and eight others were injured after a tent collapsed shortly after the morning 'aarti'. The devotees had gathered under the tent to take shelter from rain when a heavy iron angle from the structure came loose and fell. It struck a man on the head, killing him on the spot. Several injured persons were taken to Bamitha Primary Health Centre, and some were admitted to Khajuraho Primary Health Centre. Four people with serious injuries were shifted to the district hospital.

--IANS

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