PATNA, Aug. 18 -- At least seven women devotees, including three of a family, died in a stampede near Ashok Dham temple, Lakhisarai, approximately 130 km north-east of Patna, on Monday morning. Bihar chief minister Samrat Choudhary announced an ex-gratia of Rs.4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased. The incident occurred on the route between Ashok Dham railway station and the temple when a large crowd of devotees gathered for "Jalabhishek" (offering water to Lord Shiva) in the early hours of Monday. More than 23 devotees have been injured and three of them referred to Patna Medical College Hospital, while others are being treated at the Lakhisarai Sadar Hospital, as per reports till evening. The incident took place around 6.40 am as a large number of devotees gathered around the Shiva temple to offer prayers on the third Monday and Nagpanchmi of the holy month of Shravan. Among the deceased were Hemlata Devi (55), Lalita Devi (50), Savita Kumari (35), all residents of Halsi locality of Lakhisarai, Manmala Devi (44), a native of Barahiya in Lakhisarai, Rinku Devi (50), a native of Munger, Saroj Devi (65) of Patna and Savitri Devi (49) resident of Lakhisarai. A probe into the stampede has been ordered by the government, which will be done by an additional district magistrate (ADM) rank officer of Lakhisarai, according to divisional commissioner Prem Singh Meena. "All aspects of the incident, including lapses, if any, by the district administration, will be probed," said Meena. Though the actual reason of what triggered the stampede is under probe, reports suggest that there was panic among devotees walking towards the temple from the railway halt side through a muddy road along the fields when a electric pole fell. It was said rumour spread that a pole and live wire had fallen creating panic among the devotees with men devotees rushing towards the women queue in panic leading to the stampede.The district administration, however, has claimed the electric pole had an insulated cable and was not a naked wire. Eye-witnesses said that the commotion put additional pressure on the women's queue, where several devotees fell and others behind them continued moving forward. Officials said the fatal crush unfolded within minutes. Lakhisarai district magistrate Shailendra Kumar said that authorities had made arrangements for a large number of devotees, but the crowd was much bigger than expected. Due to the heavy pressure of the crowd, a part of the barricade collapsed, causing people to fall over each other. Talking with the reporters, the DM said, "The crowd became particularly heavy between 6:20 am and 6:40 am. The queue of devotees had extended towards Ashok Dham station, where two trains were stationed as per scheduled. A sudden collapse of an electric pole triggered panic among the devotees. A rumour reportedly spread that the fallen pole was electrically charged, causing people to rush in different directions. The resulting panic led to a stampede, with several devotees falling and being crushed by the crowd," the DM said. Reports said that locals and fellow pilgrims immediately began rescue efforts. Police and administrative officials rushed to the spot after receiving information about the incident. A devotee Pawan Kumar Gupta, who was one of those standing in the queue and an eye witnesses to the stampede, told reporters at the site of occurrence that there was a huge crowd in the queue when word spread that an electricity pole had fallen and that some people had suffered electric shocks. "Panic soon gripped the devotees, who began running for safety. The barricading then collapsed, causing people to fall on top of one another," Gupta claimed. President Droupadi Murmu and Vice President CP Radhakrishnan expressed grief over the deaths of the devotees in the stampede. President Murmu also prayed for the swift recovery of those who have been injured. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also expressed grief over the loss of lives in the stampede at Lakhisarai. The PM assured that the local administration was assisting those affected. Bihar chief minister Samrat Choudhary directed the administration to ensure prompt and proper medical care for the injured. Agriculture minister and Lakhisarai MLA, Vijay Kumar Sinha, also visited the Sadar hospital, Lakhisarai, to meet those injured in the incident and asserted that "if there has been any administrative lapse leading to the stampede, the erring officials would be held accountable". Former chief minister Nitish Kumar condoled the deaths and called the incident "extremely tragic." "I am heartbroken by the news of the deaths of devotees in the accident. My deepest condolences to the bereaved families. I pray for the swift recovery of the injured," he said in a post on X. Leader of the opposition in Bihar assembly, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav while expressing grief over the incident said that the incident reflected how the state government had failed to provide adequate system in place at the temples for crowd management and security of the devotees. "This incident is a reflection of misgovernance by the NDA government," Yadav said....