The tragedy happened when pilgrims pushed and shoved along a narrow lane to a bathing pond on the banks of the Godavari river at Nasik in Western India to cleanse their sins.

"I saw many people being crushed in front of my eyes," sobbed Sumana Mahashinde, barely able to speak as she waited outside a hospital for injured relatives.

"My 60-year-old mother-in-law was pushed and people stamped on her. She died on the spot. It was very difficult for us to get out of the crowd carrying her."

One witness said several bodies were trapped in a huge pipe routing muddy water from the fast-flowing Godavari through the Ramkund bathing pond. More than 150 people were injured.

The town's mayor, Dashrath Patil, said 39 people were killed -- 26 of them women --and at least 125 people were injured. Two of the injured were police officers, he said.

The bamboo fence, held together by ropes, was meant to direct traffic and funnel the crowds toward the river. Thousands of impatient pilgrims pushed into it, and the barrier collapsed, sending people spilling to the ground, survivors said.

"People, even women, were pushing forward. Due to the weight of the crowd, people started falling down," said Lalji Mistry, a 35-year-old pilgrim who escaped the crush. "Old women were crying, 'Take me out. Help me.'"

Chhagan Bhujbal, deputy chief minister of Maharashtra state, said some 50,000 people were behind the barrier when it fell and pilgrims fell.

"People at the back just began walking on them and that's how the stampede happened," said Bhujbal. "It was a tragic accident."

Ambulances, their sirens wailing, rushed to the area as rescue workers urged the crowd to give way so the injured could be taken to hospitals.

After the stampede, tens of thousands of pilgrims continued worshipping at the festival area, which is spread across dozens of acres.

"Many don't know what's going on. They are still worshipping," said Mistry.

The Kumbh Mela festival is held every 12 years, timed in connection with alignments of the Sun and Jupiter.