The toll established Friday, March 31 is provisional but it is already very heavy: the collapse of the floor of a Hindu temple in India has killed 35 people, and rescue operations are still ongoing, said a local official to AFP.
Dozens of worshippers fell Thursday into a bâoli, a well lined with stairs used for religious rituals, when the floor of the temple, which covered it, gave way under their weight.
The accident occurred in the city of Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Thursday he was "extremely saddened" by the tragedy.
"The government is conducting rescue and rescue operations at a steady pace," he added. "My prayers go out to all those affected and their families."
The relatives of the victims will receive 200,000 rupees (2,230 euros) in compensation, said Narendra Modi's office.
Frequent accidents
An investigation has been opened, Narottam Mishra, interior minister of the central state of the country, confirmed to the press.
Police official Manish Kapooriya told AFP the survivors had been taken to hospital.
Television footage showed rescuers setting up ropes and ladders to reach people trapped in the well.
Temples all over India were overflowing with devotees on the occasion of the Ram Navami festival, celebrating the birthday of the Hindu deity Rama.
In India, fatal accidents are common in places of worship during religious holidays. In 2016, at least 112 people died when a fireworks warehouse exploded that sparked a huge fire near a Hindu temple in Kerala state.
Three years earlier, 115 Hindu worshippers died as a result of a crowd movement on a bridge near a temple in Madhya Pradesh state. The stampede came after a rumour of the bridge collapsing, as 400,000 people gathered in the area.
With AFP
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