Nashik prepares for Kumbh Mela, ready to prevent stampede of 12 years ago

Mumbai

INDIA'S mass Hindu pilgrimage, the Kumbh Mela, officially starts in Maharashtra state on Tuesday, with organisers desperate to avoid a repeat of a deadly stampede at the same venue 12 years ago.

Thirty-nine pilgrims were trampled to death and dozens injured when the religious festival was last held on the banks of the Godavari river in the city of Nashik, around 160 km north-east of Mumbai, in 2003.