Two women devotees hospitalised after pot of hot khichdi falls on them at Mathura ashram

Mathura (UP), Nov 2 (PTI) Two women devotees from West Bengal waiting in a queue for prasad outside an ashram here suffered serious burns after a person serving 'khichdi' slipped and the hot food fell on them, officials said on Saturday.

Eight more women standing in the queue also suffered minor injuries when the hot khichdi from the utensil splashed onto them, they said.

All the injured devotees were rushed to the district hospital, from where two in critical condition were referred to a hospital in Agra, they added.

The incident took place on Friday at the Gauri Gopal Ashram in Mathura's Vrindavan area, the officials said. Chief Medical Superintendent of the district hospital Dr Vandana Agrawal said the women belonged to a group of devotees who had come from West Bengal on a trip to Vrindavan.

On Friday morning, when all of them reached the Gauri Gopal Ashram located in Parikrama Marg Sant Colony, prasad was being distributed outside. As the devotees queued up to receive 'khichdi', which is made with rice and lentils, a person carrying the utensil slipped and the hot food fell on the women standing nearby, Dr Agrawal said.

The incident caused panic among the devotees and the 10 injured women were rushed to the hospital, she added.

According to hospital authorities, two devotees who were seriously injured were immediately referred to SN Medical College in Agra, while the remaining were discharged after first aid treatment.

Aniruddhacharya of Gauri Gopal Ashram said the prasad is distributed to a large number of devotees every day. Friday's incident happened when an employee of the ashram carrying the khichdi slipped. PTI COR NAV RPA