According to reports, the stampede took place at Kotagummam ghat in Rajahmundry when some people fell down when the gates were opened. The gates were closed for the Ministers and their kin to take the holy dip and when it was opened the stampede took place in the massive rush, it is said.

"We have received crowd of more than the capacity of the ghat here which is about 15,000 whereas we today had about 50,000 outside the ghat," East Godavari Collector Arun Kumar told PTI.

The stampede happened soon after Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and his family members left the place after taking the holy dip in the river.

Out of several Pushkar ghats in East Godavari district, people were attracted to a particular ghat because of wide Government publicity that it is the most holiest among all.

The mishap occurred as several thousands of people rushed to bathe in the Godavari on the first day of the festival and that too at a particular time and partucular ghat after seeing the advertisements made by the Government, which had not made necessary arrangements nor anticipated the surge of pilgrims from far and wide.

The Government of Naidu, a staunch believer in vastu and astrology and who also founded the now-jinxed Amaravati as the new Capital of Andhra on such belief, had set and advertised the muhurtham (auspicious time) at 6.26 am on Tuesday which in itself is physically impossible for thousands to take a dip at the same time at a congested ghat.

The ghat was advertised as the most sacred although there are 32 ghats in Rajahmundry and about 250 at other points along Godavari.

Majority of the victims had come form Srikakulam and Vizianagaram.

Although, a visibly shocked Naidu, while announcing a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the families of each of the deceased, said,"We will probe how the incident occurred and necessary action will be taken against those responsible."

Crores of people come to various ghats along Godavari river during the course of the 12-day festival. About 275 ghats had been developed in the twin districts of East and West Godavari. However, the rush was at the Pushkar ghat in Rajahmundry which could not accommodate such a surge of people.

The situation was frightening and at the same time pathetic, eyewitnesses said. Bodies and the injured were lying around.

Pushkaram or Pushkaralu is a religious festival that occurs once every 144 years.

The current Maha Pushkaralu, also known as the Kumbh of the South, coincides with the Kumbh Mela festival being held this year in Nashik in Maharashtra, which also began on Tuesday.