Festival crush in Indian city of Kolkata kills at least 17, local media say

A ​crush at ​a religious festival ‌in the eastern ​Indian city of Kolkata killed at least 17 ‌people and injured dozens, local media reported on Saturday.

Durga Puja, a multi-day annual Hindu festival in ‌the state of West Bengal, draws huge ‌crowds to temporary structures known as pandals that house idols of the goddess Durga. The incident occurred at ⁠the ​exit gate ⁠in Kolkata's Girish Park area after heavy rain led ⁠to overcrowding as large numbers of devotees attempted to ​leave the venue, local TV said.

Indian Prime Minister ⁠Narendra Modi's office, in a post on social media ⁠platform ​X, announced a compensation payment of 200,000 rupees ($2,106.15) for the next of kin ⁠of those who died and 50,000 rupees each for ⁠the ⁠injured. ($1 = 94.9600 Indian rupees)