15 tourists injured in honey bee attack in Odisha’s Konark Temple

KONARK: At least 15 tourists, including four foreigners, were injured after being stung by bees at the world famous Sun Temple at Konark on Tuesday, police said.
The injured, including children and women, were rushed to a government hospital in the city.

This is the second day that the honey bees stung the visiting tourists to the famous world heritage.
While nine tourists were discharged from the hospital after preliminary treatment, four foreigners and two persons from Chattisgarh had to be admitted, an attending doctor said.

Given the incident, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has stopped the entry of tourists into the temple premises till the beehives are removed.
The ASI has now closed its ticket counters at the main gate for tourists.

An official of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) said they are trying to take steps to remove the honey bee nests from the premises of the sun temple for the protection of tourists.

He said the tourists had been vacated and selling of tickets has been put on hold temporarily.

On Monday, a swarm of honey bees were sighted at the temple, resulting in chaos among the tourists. The bees came in hundreds from a beehive within the temple premises which had reportedly been destroyed by monkeys.

A large number of tourists who had come to Konark were disappointed at not being able to see the 13th Century shrine famous for its sculptures. The Sun Temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.