At least 16 people have been killed in a stampede in the holy northern Indian town of Haridwar.

The stampede happened at a religious ceremony observing the 100th anniversary of the birth of the founder of a Hindu sect.

Thousands have been attending the ceremony for Sri Ram Sharma, founder of the Gayatri Parivar sect.

Reports said the number of casualties could be higher. TV pictures showed injured people being taken to hospital.

A senior local official, D Santhel Pandiyan, told Agence France-Presse news agency that 14 women and two men had died in the stampede. Forty-six others have been seriously injured.

"More worshippers turned up than the place could accommodate and so the stampede occurred," Mr Pandiyan said.

Hemant Sahu, who works for the event organisers, said: "When the big ritual was going on, too many people rushed forward to make their offerings to the holy fire and the crowd got out of control."

Reports said a number of people fell but the other pilgrims continued to push.

Haridwar, 173km (107 miles) north of Delhi, is a temple-filled town where the Ganges emerges from the Himalayan mountains and is considered a sacred Hindu city.

The huge numbers attending religious festivals in India make stampedes a frequent risk.

A stampede at a festival in the southern state of Kerala in January killed more than 100 people.

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