A stampede killed 12 pilgrims and injured at least 15 at Jammu’s Vaishno Devi shrine in the early hours of Saturday, with several devotees accusing the administration of failing to control entry or put up dividers and police of thoughtlessly wielding their sticks.

The Jammu and Kashmir administration, which organises the pilgrimage, appeared to have been unprepared for the sudden surge of devotees around midnight — despite New Year crowds having become a trend in recent years. Making matters worse, some pilgrims said, people were allowed to come in unchecked, ignoring crowd control and Covid concerns.

“With huge masses of pilgrims moving in opposite directions, people had nowhere to go. It was like hell, the kind of which I have never seen before,” Faizabad resident Ashok Sharma said.

He said he had been able to save his wife and son against huge odds, pulling them out of the crush and guiding them towards a pillar.

A woman pilgrim told reporters outside the shrine that the tragedy could have been avoided had dividers been placed to allow two-way traffic. She alleged the police used their batons, deepening the chaos.

The embattled administration, however, claimed the yatra had been “managed very well” and blamed a minor quarrel between two groups for the tragedy. A high-level probe has been ordered.

Asked how many pilgrims were at the shrine during the stampede, which the temple management said occurred around 2.15am, officials gave diverse figures ranging from several thousand to a few lakh.

For hours after the stampede, pilgrims moved from place to place looking for their loved ones.

A statement from the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board said the stampede happened near Gate 3, and that 12 pilgrims died and 15 were injured.

Officials, however, said the number of the injured was larger but those with minor injuries had chosen not to visit the hospital.

An official said four people had been admitted to the ICU at the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Narayana Super Specialty Hospital, Kakryal.

The shrine, located 50km from Jammu city, attracts millions of pilgrims every year.

Jammu and Kashmir director-general of police Dilbag Singh said it was a “useless thing to say” that mismanagement had caused the stampede.

“I think the crowd was managed very well by the people on the ground,” he said.

Singh said “friction” between two groups had caused “confusion”, leading to the stampede, but added that the matter was being looked into. He attributed the deaths and injuries to “suffocation and people being run over”.

“It was more of a confusion, with no one knowing what was happening, people running helter-skelter…. The area is a little narrow as you go close (to the) sanctum sanctorum,” Singh said.

Local MP Jugal Kishore of the BJP too cited a clash between two groups and said the stampede happened within 200 metres of the sanctum sanctorum.

Officials in Katra, where the shrine is located, said the temple attracts more pilgrims during festivals, with large crowds of youths turning up during the New Year festivities over the past few years.

The three-member probe will be headed by the principal secretary (home) and will include the additional director-general of police (Jammu zone) and the Jammu divisional commissioner, an official said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh for the family of each dead and Rs 50,000 for each injured. Lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha’s office has announced an ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh for the next of kin of those killed.

An official said the pilgrimage had resumed, with Covid norms and standard operating procedures being followed strictly.