Pilgrims stranded in India shrine

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One person has been killed and nearly 135 others stranded after a stairway leading to a shrine in northern India collapsed, officials say.

The army has been called in to rescue worshippers stranded in a cave leading to the Geparnath temple in Rajasthan.

Officials say two people were injured when the stairway collapsed after a landslide and heavy rains in the area.

Earlier this month at least 140 people died in a stampede at a Hindu temple in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh.

Reports said a part of the stairway leading to the temple on the banks of the Chambal river near Kota town had been swept away on Sunday evening.

A local official said food packets had been provided to the stranded pilgrims.

Indian temples are regularly hit by accidents as huge crowds of Hindu devotees flock to make offerings at festival times.

There have been at least three fatal stampedes in the country so far this year, although the numbers killed were far smaller than in last week's stampeded in Himachal Pradesh.