At least 145 were killed in a panic at a famous temple in Indian north state Himachal Pradesh Sunday, the police said.

The stampede occurred after a railing outside the temple collapsed, the Indo-Asian News Service reported.

People stand near bodies outside the Naina Devi temple at Bilaspur in the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh August 3, 2008. The death toll in a stampede at the temple on Sunday rose to at least 123 people, police said. [Xinhua/Reuters Photo]

The crowd had gathered at the temple on the occasion of the 10-day religious fair that began Saturday.

Most of the dead were women and children. A majority of the victims were from neighboring Punjab state. A state government statement Sunday evening said that 123 people were killed and 40 injured in the accident.

People crowd around bodies outside the Naina Devi temple at Bilaspur in the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh August 3, 2008. [Xinhua/Reuters Photo]

Rescue operations at the temple, located atop a hill, were hit by inclement weather, the report said.

The police said the death toll could well mount further. He said most of the injured have been taken to the hospitals.

Relatives react outside Anandpur Sahib Civil hospital in Himachal Pradesh, India, where the dead and injured of a temple stampede were taken Sunday, August 3, 2008. [Agencies]

Traffic on the road leading to the temple has been blocked, the police said.

The temple is located 160 km from the state capital Shimla, the popular hill resort in northern India.

(Xinhua News Agency August 4, 2008)