Selfie Fanatic Escaped With Minor Injuries

Hyderabad: A youth who attempted to take a selfie in front of an oncoming train escaped with minor injuries, according to a new video posted by friends on social media.

It may be recalled that the youth, Siva (25), took selfie video in front of a MMTS train near Borabanda station, on Wednesday. He stood close to the railway tracks and did not budge despite warnings from a homeguard, nearby. The video ended abrubtly as the train hit his hand. The video of the incident went viral on the social media with people assuming that he was either dead or critically injured. A new video posted by his friends on Thursday showed that Siva escaped with minor injuries.

They said that the train driver applied emergency brakes thereby reducing the impact of hitting Siva. He got treated at a private hospital, later. The railway police (RPF) registered a case and presented him in a railway court. He was imposed a fine of Rs 500.

Railway Minister Cautions Youth

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, on Thursday, urged the youth to refrain from taking selfies on rail tracks, days after a 22-year-old man from Hyderabad suffered grievous injuries during one such attempt.

In his message, Goyal has appealed to citizens to avoid selfies or stunts near railway tracks. "In the last few days, I have seen news and videos in which there have been accidents of youth taking selfies or showing stunts near railway tracks. It is very disheartening to know about these accidents.

"You all are the future of the country and my appeal is to avoid putting your life at risk and stay alert around the railway tracks. Follow the rules and signs and pay attention while approaching rail crossings," he said.

Along with the message, the ministry has also issued a number of posters with references from popular Bollywood songs like "Zindagi maut na banjaye sambhalo yaaron" (Be cautious, life can turn into death) from the film Sarfarosh, accompanied with images of people leaning out of trains. There is another which says "Sun raha hai tu na" (Are you listening) from the film Ashique 2, accompanied with a picture of a young boy with earphones walking on the tracks with the message - "Listening to songs is fine, but not on the tracks."

The message from Goyal also comes on a day an equally disturbing video of a Kashmiri man lying down on a railway track under a running train has gone viral.