STORY: More than 36 hours after a deadly stampede at India's Maha Kumbh Mela festival claimed dozens of lives, distraught relatives frantically searched hospitals and mortuaries for missing loved ones.

More than seven people were killed in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela, or Great Pitcher Festival, in the northern Indian holy city of Prayagraj on Wednesday.

Many were feared dead after millions of Hindu pilgrims at a huge Hindu festival in India rushed to bathe in holy river waters.

The Hindu festival that turned deadly in northern India on Wednesday is a religious gathering with deep spiritual meaning for devotees who come by the millions to take a cleansing dip in waters they consider sacred.

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At least 30 people have been killed and dozens more injured in crowd crushes at the Maha Kumbh Mela in India, where millions have gathered to bathe at the confluence of sacred rivers.

Millions of Hindu devotees gathered on Thursday (January 30) for a holy dip in the sacred river waters of India's northern city of Prayagraj as part of the Kumbh Mela, a day after a stampede at the religious festival.

At least 30 people were killed on Wednesday when a stampede broke out at the world's largest religious festival in India, according to the police. In addition, 60 visitors to the Maha Kumbh Mela were injured,

The ongoing Mahakumbh at Prayagraj has seen a massive turnout, with around 30 crore devotees having bathed in the holy Sangam as of January 30. However, the 19th day of the event was marked by a tragic stampede that resulted in the death of at least 30 people.