Lodge FIR against reel creators if they pose safety threat: Railway Board

The Railway Board has asked all its zones to lodge FIR against reel creators if they pose threat to safe rail operations or cause inconvenience to the passengers in the coaches or on the railway premises.

The Railway Board's instruction follows recent cases wherein people, mainly youngsters, compromised rail safety by filming stunt videos on railway tracks and in moving trains using their mobile phones.

"People have crossed all limits for making reels. They not only risk their own lives, but also jeopardise the safety of hundreds of rail passengers by placing objects or running vehicles on the railway tracks or by performing life-threatening stunts on moving trains," a senior Railway Board official said.

"Viral videos have shown people getting killed by approaching trains while taking selfies because they went too close to the track without realising how much area a train can cover at a short time. Many died on the spot after being hit by train," he added.

According to Railway Board officials, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and the Government Railway Police (GRP) have been asked to adopt a "zero tolerance" policy towards reel creators flouting norms.

Recently, the RPF registered a case against a man for attempting a stunt by unauthorisedly driving a Mahindra Thar SUV on the railway tracks between Kanakpura and Dhanakya railway stations in Jaipur division.

According to railway officials, a loco pilot of a goods train, which was coming on the same track, showed alertness and stopped the train at a safe distance after seeing the SUV stuck on the tracks. It is suspected that the man attempted the stunt to get a reel filmed by his friends for a social media post.

In another recent incident, the railway police registered an FIR against 10 students of a city college for "dangerously" travelling on footboard and causing a chaotic situation at the Vyasarpadi Jeeva railway station in Chennai.

After a video went viral showing the students raising slogans at the Vyasarpadi Jeeva railway station with one of them trying to climb atop the roof of the train, the police launched a probe after registering a case, railway officials said.

"Several such cases have come to light through viral videos, prompting the Railway Board to deal with them as sternly as possible," an official said.