A vermilion dot on the forehead is one of India’s most widely accepted Hindu cultural insignias. At the Maha Kumbh festival, where millions are flocking to pray and bathe at the confluence of India’s holy rivers,

At least 17 people were killed and many more injured in a stampede at India's Maha Kumbh festival, the world's largest religious gathering, a doctor at a government hospital said, as tens of thousands of pilgrims rushed to dip in sacred river waters during the Hindu event.

People were trampled as pilgrims at the Maha Kumbh Mela, one of the world’s biggest gatherings, gathered where the Ganges and Yamuna Rivers meet, officials said.

The ashes of more than 400 cremated Hindus laid in earthen urns at Sonpuri Crematorium, near Old Golimar, and at different temples of Karachi for years with the community waiting for visas to take them to Haridwar, in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, for immersion.

Authorities had expected a record 100 million people to visit Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh, or "festival of the Sacred Pitcher", on Wednesday.

The driver was believed to have a pistol in their vehicle when law enforcement first made contact, police said.

Between 90 to 100 million pilgrims had congregated to take ritual baths in sacred rivers at a festival in northern India.

The grandeur of Kumbh Mela 2025 is unmatched. But among the millions of devotees, two special seekers have travelled across the world to be here—Americans on a quest for spiritual enlightenment. These foreign devotees are experiencing the transformative power of faith,

According to the Indian government, some 400 million people were expected to attend the Maha Kumbh Mela, the most important religious event in Hinduism, held this year in Prayagraj from January 13 to February 26.

At least 30 people were killed and over 30 have been injured in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela, one of the world's biggest gatherings that occurs every 12 years.

A once-in-12-year Hindu festival, Maha Kumbh, the world's largest religious gathering, is being held in Prayagraj, norther

A deadly stampede on Wednesday hit India's Kumbh Mela, a vast Hindu festival held by the banks of the Ganges river that 400 million pilgrims are expected to visit over its six-week duration. - Sacred bathing - The Kumbh Mela,