- April 10, 2024
Ujjain Mahakal temple fire: Servitor injured in Holi aarti fire dies in Mumbai hospital | Indore News – Times of India
UJJAIN: A 79-year-old servitor who was injured in the fire that broke out during Bhasmarti at Mahakal Temple on the day of Holi died in a hospital in Mumbai on Wednesday.
This is the first time in living memory that a temple staff member has died due to an accident in the sanctum sanctorum of the Jyotirlinga temple. There have been accidents earlier – 37 people died in a stampede in July 1996, and in 2015, three devotees died when a tree fell on them inside the compound – but this is the first fatal mishap in the sanctum.
The victim, Satyanarayan Soni, was a sewak (support staff) of Shri Mahakaleshwar Management Committee.Soni was among 14 people, including priests, who sustained burns in a fire that broke out when gulal (dry color) was sprayed during the early morning Bhasmarti. His body was brought to Ujjain, and he was cremated on Wednesday.
“Soni had sustained 25-30% burns. He was initially admitted to Aurobindo Hospital in Indore and then shifted to Mumbai at government expense. He was diabetic, so his recovery was slow,” Collector Neeraj Kumar Singh said. A day after the accident, the collector had said that all the injured were stable.
Three victims are still under treatment in Indore, the collector said. Ten people have been discharged.
A magisterial probe was ordered soon after the incident. An interim report submitted by two officials heading the probe suggested that the fire was caused by flammable chemicals in the gulal.
CM Mohan Yadav, whose hometown is Ujjain, expressed his condolences. “It is my personal loss that Mahakal devotee Shri Satyanarayan Soni Ji passed away during treatment in a horrific accident that occurred during Bhasmarti at Mahakal temple on Holi. My prayers are with the bereaved family. I pray to Baba Mahakal to give place to the departed soul at His feet and give strength to the family members to bear this immense sorrow.”
This is the first time in living memory that a temple staff member has died due to an accident in the sanctum sanctorum of the Jyotirlinga temple. There have been accidents earlier – 37 people died in a stampede in July 1996, and in 2015, three devotees died when a tree fell on them inside the compound – but this is the first fatal mishap in the sanctum.
The victim, Satyanarayan Soni, was a sewak (support staff) of Shri Mahakaleshwar Management Committee.Soni was among 14 people, including priests, who sustained burns in a fire that broke out when gulal (dry color) was sprayed during the early morning Bhasmarti. His body was brought to Ujjain, and he was cremated on Wednesday.
“Soni had sustained 25-30% burns. He was initially admitted to Aurobindo Hospital in Indore and then shifted to Mumbai at government expense. He was diabetic, so his recovery was slow,” Collector Neeraj Kumar Singh said. A day after the accident, the collector had said that all the injured were stable.
Three victims are still under treatment in Indore, the collector said. Ten people have been discharged.
A magisterial probe was ordered soon after the incident. An interim report submitted by two officials heading the probe suggested that the fire was caused by flammable chemicals in the gulal.
CM Mohan Yadav, whose hometown is Ujjain, expressed his condolences. “It is my personal loss that Mahakal devotee Shri Satyanarayan Soni Ji passed away during treatment in a horrific accident that occurred during Bhasmarti at Mahakal temple on Holi. My prayers are with the bereaved family. I pray to Baba Mahakal to give place to the departed soul at His feet and give strength to the family members to bear this immense sorrow.”
