India, Jan. 29 -- Opposition parties hit out at the Centre over Wednesday's stampede at Maha Kumbh, with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge blaming "half-baked" arrangements and "paying more attention to self-promotion".

Kharge expressed grief over the incident in Prayagraj and said, "The news of a stampede on the banks of Teerthraj Sangam during Maha Kumbh in which several people lost their lives and many others got injured is extremely heart-breaking. Our deepest condolences to the families of devotees and we wish for the speedy recovery of the injured. There are still many important royal baths left, so the central and state should wake up now and improve the arrangement to ensure such unpleasant incidents do not happen in the futu...