68 killed in India temple stampede

Story Highlights
* Police: 68 pilgrims -- including 30 children -- killed
* Crush occured at Naina Devi Temple in N. India's Himachal Pradesh state
* Police: Stampede triggered when too many pilgrims squeezed into small area

NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- A stampede in a crowded mountaintop Hindu temple in northern India killed 68 people, 30 of them children, police said.

Another 47 people were injured at the Naina Devi Temple in Himachal Pradesh state, Deputy Police Commissioner C. P. Verma told CNN.

The stampede was caused by rumors of fighting going on near the temple, Verma said.

The rumors lead to "a rush of the public in a very small place," he added.

erma said most of the wounded had been removed from the temple and taken to hospitals.

"We ask the public not to fall prey to rumors," said Verma.

According to The Associated Press, rescue workers used a cable car at the temple to help evacuate the injured from the mountain top.

The devotees were attending a nine-day religious festival at the Naina Devi Temple, Verma told AP.

Bilaspur is about 155 miles (250 kilometers) northeast of Indian capital, New Delhi.

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