India, Nov. 2 -- One hundred and twenty-nine people have died in stampedes across India at temples, victory celebrations, railway stations and a political rally so far this year. Crowd surges are already quite common in India, the world's most populous country, and religious gatherings often attract huge crowds of people flocking to temples or pilgrimage sites. This often leads to overcrowding and hampers security measures.

On Saturday (November 1), yet another stampede took place at a temple that led to several deaths and injuries. At Andhra Pradesh's Venkateswara Swamy temple in Srikakulam, nine people, including a child, died in the stampede on the occasion of Ekadashi. Many survivors blamed poor crowd management at the privately owne...