Deadly Sting At Cricket Ground Leaves Umpire Dead, Players Injured

Lucknow: A senior cricket umpire died and several players and officials were injured after a swarm of bees attacked people during a match at the Rahul Sapru ground in Shuklaganj on Wednesday afternoon.

The deceased was identified as 65 year old Manik Gupta, a resident of Philkhana, who had been associated with the Kanpur Cricket Association for nearly 30 years as a panel umpire. He was officiating a match of the first Sunil Tiwari Memorial Under 13 Cricket League at the Rahul Sapru ground on Wednesday.

According to witnesses, after completing his on field duties, Gupta moved to the B ground where another match was in progress. He told fellow umpires that they would leave together after the match and sat near the boundary. Shortly afterwards, a swarm of bees descended on the ground, stinging several players and the scorer and triggering panic.

Seeing the bees approach, Gupta tried to run but fell. Witnesses said more than 50 bees attacked him and continued stinging him for around 10 minutes. Due to his age and a pre existing heart condition, his health deteriorated rapidly.

Former Ranji player Rahul Sapru rushed Gupta in his car to hospitals in Shuklaganj, but private hospitals declined admission after providing preliminary treatment. He was later taken towards Hallet Hospital in Kanpur by officials of the Kanpur Cricket Association, but he died on the way. Doctors declared him brought dead on arrival. The family declined a post mortem.

At least 10 people, including players and officials, were taken to a nursing home in Kanpur for treatment after sustaining bee stings. Their condition is stated to be stable.

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Eyewitness and fellow umpire Sunil Kumar Nishad said around 40 to 45 people were present at the ground, including players from Kanpur and Lucknow. A banyan tree along the boundary wall had a beehive and bees had been hovering since morning. He said there were three attacks during the day. The first occurred around 7 am when children reached the ground to collect their kits. Some players were stung again around 8 am. Around 8.30 am, the entire swarm attacked, creating chaos for nearly 15 minutes as people ran for cover.

Gupta is survived by four daughters. Three are married while the youngest is an intermediate student. The family resides in Philkhana. His last rites were performed on Thursday morning at Bhagwat Das Ghat.

Kanpur Cricket Association chairman Dr Sanjay Kapoor said the incident was deeply distressing. He said Manik Gupta was among the senior umpires of the association and the KCA family would extend all possible assistance to the bereaved family and stand by them in this difficult time.