At least 35 people have died after the roof of a stepwell collapsed, plunging scores of people tens of feet down into the well.
The army was called in last night to help with rescue operations that have gone on for over 18 hours.
The incident took place at the Baleshwar Mahadev temple in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
Devotees had thronged the temple on Ram Navami, one of the most auspicious days in the Hindu calendar which celebrates the birth of Lord Rama.
Dr Ilayaraja, the District Collector of Indore, said “a total of 35 people died, one missing and 14 people have been rescued. Two people returned home safely after getting treatment. The search operation to trace persons reported missing is underway.”
A fire ritual (Havan) was being conducted on the concrete slab covering the stepwell where the devotees had gathered. The platform could not take the weight of the many on it and gave way.
Mahesh Chandra Jain, of the state Disaster Emergency and Response Force, said the army joined the rescue operation late on Thursday.
“Seventy army soldiers started the rescue and recovered at least 16 bodies buried under the debris of the roof in the stepwell.”
The National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF), police and locals have been engaged in rescue operations. Unable to reach some areas of the well, the authorities requested for military help.
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Mr Jain said: “We were facing difficulty in rescue operation because water is continuously coming out of the stepwell.”
In a tweet Prime Minister Narendra Modi said: “Extremely pained by the mishap in Indore.
“Spoke to Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and took an update on the situation. The State Government is spearheading rescue and relief work at a quick pace. My prayers are with all those affected and their families.”
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident. “I have given instructions to investigate the incident. In this unfortunate incident, the government stands with all those families with full sensitivity, whom we could not save.”
The temple head priest Laxminarayan Sharma, who was rescued, said that due to construction in the temple the fire ritual was conducted on the stepwell platform.
“The roof was constructed without any concrete and was supported by putting stone slabs and concrete by fitting iron rods”, he added.
Images from the site showed many people including women and children trapped in a mesh of iron rods and concrete debris.
There are reports that residents of the area had made prior complaints to the municipal corporation regarding the safety of the temple.
The families of those killed have demanded action against the temple trust.
Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s former “thug” and “pit bull”, has been accused of lying about a phone call he says he made to the former US president about payments to ex porn star Stormy Daniels.
Cohen, a lawyer who worked for the Trump Organisation from 2006 to 2017, has been giving evidence in the case about hush money payments to Ms Daniels – in an attempt to cover up an alleged sexual encounter in 2006.
Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, called into question an important detail – a phone call made by Cohen to Trump’s assistant, Keith Schiller, on 24 October 2016.
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Cohen, 57, has maintained that during that call he spoke to Trump (who was either given the phone by Mr Schiller or placed on loudspeaker – we don’t know which) and told him he had paid Ms Daniels $130,000 in hush money on his behalf.
But Mr Blanche called this into doubt – showing the jury a number of interactions suggesting Cohen was in contact with Mr Schiller about a different issue at the same time, namely that he was receiving harassing phone calls and texts from a 14-year-old child.
“That was a lie – you did not talk to President Trump on that night, you talked to Keith Schiller about what we just went through,” Mr Blanche said.
Cohen said that, based on his records, he believes he spoke to Trump about the Stormy Daniels matter.
“We are not asking for your belief,” Mr Blanche said. “This jury does not want to hear what you think happened.”
That exchange was part of several hours of questioning which apparently sought to paint a picture of Cohen as someone who is eager to see his former boss behind bars.
Mr Blanche played jurors audio clips of Cohen saying the case “fills me with delight” and that imagining Trump and his family in prison made him feel “giddy with hope and laughter”.
“Does the outcome of this trial affect you personally?” Mr Blanche asked.
“Yes,” Cohen replied. He is due to return to the witness stand on Monday.
Cohen worked as the former president’s fixer. He once described himself as Trump’s “spokesman, thug, pit bull and lawless lawyer”.
He once said he would take a bullet for his boss and admitted at the end of questioning on Tuesday that he “violated my moral compass” while working for Trump.
Hush money payouts are not illegal, but Trump is accused of falsifying business records to hide it – a claim he denies.
Cristiano Ronaldo has topped Forbes’ list of highest-paid athletes for the fourth time in his career.
Spanish golfer Jon Rahm took second place following his switch to Saudi-backed LIV Golf.
Ronaldo became the world’s highest-paid athlete after his move to Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr and Forbes said the 39-year-old’s estimated total earnings were around $260m (£205m) – an all-time high for a football player.
His on-field earnings amounted to $200m (£158m) while off-field he earned $60m (£47m) thanks to sponsorship deals where brands make use of his 629 million Instagram followers.
Rahm earned $218m (£172m) and joins Ronaldo as the only two athletes to earn over $200m.
Third on the list is record eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, who switched to Major League Soccer team Inter Miami, which helped the Argentine World Cup winner earn $135m (£107m).
The 36-year-old earned $65m (£51m) in on-field earnings but $70m (£55m) off it from deals with major sponsors such as Adidas and Apple.
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James came in fourth at $128m (£101m), while fellow NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks made fifth with $111m (£88m).
France football captain Kylian Mbappe dropped down to sixth with $110m (£87m).
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Neymar, who also moved to the Saudi Pro League to join Al-Hilal, is seventh with $108m (£85m), despite sitting out the majority of the season with a torn ACL.
French striker Karim Benzema, who also moved to Saudi Arabia, is eighth on the list with $106m (£84m), followed by Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry with $102m (£80m).
Lamar Jackson is the only NFL player on the list, in 10th place with $101m (£80m), thanks to the signing bonus negotiated into his new Baltimore Ravens contract last year.
Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, is “under missile attack”, its mayor has said.
Ihor Terekhov made his comment not long after regional governor Oleh Syniehubov said at least five Russian drones had struck the northeastern city late on Thursday.
Mr Terekhov said the city’s Osnovyanskyi district had been hit, triggering a fire.
It is unclear whether there have been casualties.
Fabrice Deprez, a journalist reporting from Ukraine, said on X he had “lost count of the number of explosions shaking Kharkiv right now – a dozen or more in the past hour”.
An air raid alert lasted more than 16-and-a-half hours, public broadcaster Suspilne said – the longest alert since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.