The death toll in the stampede at the railway station in New Delhi yesterday reached at least 18 people, authorities reported, quoted by Agence France-Presse.
The tragedy occurred at a time when trains were leaving for the Hindu pilgrimage Hum Mela in northern India, BTA specifies. Authorities said they were launching an investigation into the cause of the stampede as pilgrims rushed to board trains bound for Prayagraj, where the religious gathering, billed as the largest ever, is taking place.
"I can confirm the deaths of 15 people at the hospital. They do not have any open wounds. Most of them died (probably) of hypoxia or perhaps of trauma, but this will be confirmed only after the autopsy," Dr. Ritu Saxena, deputy director of the Lok Nayak hospital in the Indian capital, told AFP.
"Eleven more people were injured. Most of them are in a stable condition and have orthopedic injuries," she added.
Indian television channel NDTV reported the deaths of three more people today, citing an official at another hospital in the city. Most of the victims are women and children.
"I have been working as a porter since 1981, but I have never seen such a crowd," said a baggage handler at the station, quoted by the "Times of India" newspaper.
People started bumping into each other and falling from the escalator and stairs" after a change of platform was announced for the special train bound for Prayagraj, he explained.
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said an investigation had been launched.
Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his condolences to the families of the victims and prayed for "the speedy recovery of the injured" in a statement posted on social media.
According to authorities, this year's pilgrimage, which began on January 13 and will end on February 26, has already attracted more than 400 million pilgrims who have come to take a ritual bath at the confluence of the sacred Ganges and Yamuna rivers.
At least 30 people were killed and many more injured in late January when a crowd suddenly rushed forward, overcame a police cordon and trampled pilgrims. Such incidents are common during religious festivals in India, AFP notes.
In 1954, more than 400 people were killed, trapped or drowned in a single day. In 2013, the festival was plunged into mourning when 36 people died in a huge stampede at Prayagraj railway station.