At least 17 people were killed and many more injured in a stampede at India's Maha Kumbh festival, the world's largest religious gathering, a doctor at a government hospital said, as tens of thousands of pilgrims rushed to dip in sacred river waters during the Hindu event.

The late release of casualty figures at the gathering of millions of people was seen as shielding the political fortunes of a local leader with national aspirations.

Millions continued to throng the site even as police urged them to avoid the area. Deadly stampedes are relatively common around Indian religious festivals, where large crowds gather in small areas.

Probe ordered after 30 deaths at world’s largest religious festival in India - Indian authorities have released an official statement on the death toll but it is expected to rise

People were trampled as pilgrims at the Maha Kumbh Mela, one of the world’s biggest gatherings, gathered where the Ganges and Yamuna Rivers meet.

Millions of Hindu pilgrims gathered in Prayagraj, India, for the Maha Kumbh Mela festival, but thousands were trampled after crowds surged toward the confluence of two rivers.

Several people were feared dead after a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela, or Great Pitcher Festival, in northern India's Uttar Pradesh State on Wednesday, on one of the holiest days of the event as tens of millions of people gathered at the site.