Train and bus stations saw a surge in crowds as people continued to arrive for the festival, although some devotees remained nervous after the deadly crush.

Millions of devout Hindus thronged the northern Indian city of Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh festival, a day after dozens died in a stampede on the most auspicious day of the six-week event.

Moments before a deadly stampede at the world's biggest religious gathering in India, Hindu devotees queuing to take a spiritual bath in a river said they pleaded with police to open barricaded routes to thin out a surging crowd.

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.

The Kumbh Mela happens every 12 years at Sangam, the confluence of three sacred rivers - the Ganges (Ganga), Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati. Hindus believe that bathing in the sacred waters will cleanse them of sins and help them attain salvation.

A tragic stampede at the Maha Kumbh festival in northern India has left several people dead and many others injured.

GRAPHIC CONTENTIndia has ordered a probe into the stampede that killed dozens at the Maha Kumbh Mela festival in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.The stampede happened Wednesday, as millions gathered for a "holy dip" in sacred river waters,