New Delhi, Aug 11 (DHNS): The Centre has asked states and Union Territories to mark “selfie danger zones” at tourist sites after more than 50 people died in the last two years while taking selfies at dangerous locations across the country.

Issuing an advisory, the Ministry of Tourism on Wednesday asked the administrations of state governments and Union Territories to put up barricades at these locations, along with signages warning visitors of the danger involved in taking selfies at such places.

The ministry also advised the department of the states and Union Territories to deploy “tourist police” and volunteers at such locations, “if feasible”.

“The safety and security of tourists are the prime concerns of the ministry. In recent times, several accidents at tourist sites while taking selfies at dangerous locations have been widely reported by the media,” Additional Director General Meenakshi Sharma stated in her letter to the heads of the state tourism departments.

The ministry has advised them to carry out sensitisation programmes through a public address system and also spread awareness among people through the social media on the risks involved in taking selfies at dangerous locations.

The implementation of measures suggested by the ministry would go a long way in the promotion of tourism in the country, the officer added.

As per media reports, 54 people have lost their lives since 2014 while taking selfies at dangerous spots in different parts of the country.

The latest case was the death of Puja Kumari, a national-level athlete. She was taking a selfie near a harvesting plant in the Sports Authority of India’s Bhopal campus while she fell into the pond and drowned.

A section of the foreign media recently reported that out of 27 incidents of death-by-selfie across the world last year, 15 were reported from India.