14 injured in fire at Madhya Pradesh's Mahakal Temple during Holi celebrations; CM announces ex-gratia, free treatment

Bhopal: In a tragic incident, at least 14 people, including priests and temple staff, were injured after a fire broke out in the sanctum sanctorum of Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain around 5.49 am on Monday.

The incident occurred during Bhasm Aarti, a ritual performed in the early hours before sunrise. A large number of devotees were reportedly present to celebrate the Holi festival with Lord Shiva on Monday.

PN Verma, the civil surgeon at Ujjain district hospital, stated that out of the 14 injured, 9 were referred to Indore, 3 have been discharged after treatment, and 2 were still recuperating in the hospital. Verma mentioned that those referred to Indore sustained 25 per cent burn injuries, though their condition was stable.

According to eyewitnesses, the silver-coated walls of the sanctum sanctorum, covered with flex material to protect them from Gulal (coloured powder), caught fire after a devotee poured Gulal from behind on priest Sanjeev, who was performing the aarti. The Gulal, reportedly mixed with some chemicals, fell on the lamp and ignited a spark, leading to the spread of fire throughout the sanctum sanctorum's walls.

However, a major inferno was averted due to the timely action of temple staff, who, with the help of fire extinguishers, managed to control the blaze to some extent. A similar incident had occurred on Holi around six years ago, during which one priest was reportedly injured.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, after cancelling all his scheduled programmes for Holi, reached Indore in the afternoon to assess the situation and met the injured persons in the hospital. Later, Yadav also visited Ujjain to inspect the situation.

Addressing the media, Yadav stated that the preliminary report suggested that the fire ignited from Gulal, mixed with chemicals used for Holi celebrations, inside the sanctum sanctorum, falling on the lamp. The fire then spread all over upon contacting the flexi-coated material used to protect the silver-coated walls of the sanctum sanctorum.

Yadav assured strict action against those found negligent and announced compensation of Rs 1 lakh each for all injured persons. He said that both the President and PM Modi have taken note of the incident and directed measures to prevent its recurrence.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah also spoke to Dr Yadav over the phone and wished for a speedy recovery of the injured.

Ujjain collector Neeraj Singh stated that a magisterial probe by a three-member committee has been ordered, which will submit its report within three days.

The injured were identified as Sanjay alias Sanjeev (50-pujari), Manoj (43), Vikas (35), Ansh (13), Satyanarayan (79), Chintaman (65), Ramesh (60), Mahesh (27), Shivam (21), Anand (23), Sonu (54), Rajkumar (50), Kamal Joshi (44), and Mangal Bijwa (36). Among them, Kamal Joshi, the supervisor of the sanctum sanctorum, was injured. The injured included four priests, eight sewaks, and two employees.