Mumbai Declares 'Selfie Free Safe Zones' To Stop Rise In Deaths

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Mumbai has imposed 16 ‘no-selfie zones’ after India was declared the selfie death capital of the world.

World leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others have embraced the craze of snapping selfies and posting them online for their fans.

Police in Mumbai are now patrolling the no-selfie zones looking for people with outstretched arms, holding a mobile in one hand while smiling and snapping photos.

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The Evening Standard reports:

But India is home to the highest number of people who have died while taking photos of themselves, with 19 of the world’s 49 recorded selfie-linked deaths since 2014, according to San Francisco-based data service provider Priceonomics.

Now Mumbai, alarmed by the trend, has banned selfies across the city, as authorities warned people against taking unnecessary risks.

Police have declared selfies off-limits in areas perceived as risky – particularly along the coastline in spots with no railings or barriers. Anyone venturing into off-limits areas, even if they take no photos, risks being slapped with a fine of 1,200 rupees, about £13.

Earlier this month an 18-year-old college student on a class picnic lost his balance while taking a selfie atop a rock near a dam near the central Indian city of Nashik. He fell into the water and drowned, along with a classmate who jumped in to try and save him.

Last month, an 18-year-old woman fell and drowned in the sea while taking a photo of herself at Mumbai’s Bandstand Fort, a popular tourist spot.