GUWAHATI, Aug 17 - Alarmed at the increasing number of selfie-related deaths and injuries reported across the country, Dispur may soon declare the river island Umananda as a selfie-prohibited zone.
Besides Umananda in the middle of the Brahmaputra, several other areas on the banks of the mighty river could be demarcated as no-selfie zones or selfie-danger zones .
The Centre, it has been learnt, recently wrote to all the states and Union Territories, asking them to identify such vulnerable areas and take steps to prevent such incidents. If sources are to be believed, Dispur will soon take up the matter with the tourism department and the office of the Archaeological Survey of India so that such sites could be identified and demarcated accordingly.
There are also plans to prohibit entry of people with selfie sticks which have now turned into a rage. According to reports, India reported the highest number of selfie-related deaths in the world last year.
�Like in other parts of the country, people in Assam too � especially youngsters � have been bitten by the selfie bug. A number of selfie-induced accidents and deaths have been reported in the State, which is why such a move should be welcomed,� a source at the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) told this reporter.
The source said a number of selfie-induced accidents have taken place in different tourist destinations including a recent incident of death after a fall from the Umananda river island into the Brahmaputra.
An official attached to River Police said that waterways are the most vulnerable zones for such mishaps and the government must take precautionary measures to prevent such deaths close to rivers and water bodies.
A senior Assam Police official said that the department is trying to compile the number of such incidents that had taken place recently in the State.
