On Sunday, the police said that a stampede during the ”Chithira Pournami” killed 7 people which includes 4 women and injured 10 others. The stampeded happened near Thuraiyur which is around 45 kilometers away from Trichy.

Officials said that hundreds of devotees were gathered for the ”padikasu” which is a distribution ceremony, and is held annually as part of the ”Chithira Pournami” festival at the Karuppasamy temple in the village of Muthiampalayam.

PM Narendra Modi tweeted, “Saddened by the loss of lives due to the stampede at a temple in Thuraiyur, Trichy. My condolences to the families of those who passed away and prayers with the injured. All possible help is being extended by the authorities.”

He added, “An ex- gratia of Rs 2 lakh each for the next of kin of those who passed away has been approved from the PM’s National Relief Fund. Rs 50,000 each for the injured have also been approved.”

The stampede happened when the priest of the temple started to distribute the coins, officials said that hundreds of devotees ran towards the priest to collect them.

7 people were killed during the stampede and 10 people attained injuries from the stampede, officials said that the injured have been admitted to a hospital.

The distribution of the coins is part of the celebrations done in the main of the ”Chithira Pournami”  festival, it is expected that a number of devotees gather there for it.

Devotees believe that the coins distributed by the priest bring prosperity.

An official from the temple said that there was no effort done to control the crowd and added that there