PM announces Rs2 lakh ex-gratia to kin of Pratapgarh stampede victims

Prime minister Manmohan Singh today condoled the death of scores of people in a stampede in Pratapgarh in Uttar Pradesh yesterday and announced ex-gratia payment of Rs2 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased.

Singh began his reply to the presidential address in the Lok Sabha by making a special mention of the stampede in an ashram in which 65 people, mostly women and children, lost their lives.

"I join all members in conveying our heartfelt condolences to the families of deceased and wish speedy recovery to all those who have suffered injuries," he said. Singh announced Rs50,000 from the National Relief Fund to those seriously injured.