Be careful, your life is precious: Chief Minister appeals to youth

NEW DELHI: After three deaths in two days in accidents on the newly-constructed Signature Bridge, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday appealed to Delhi's youth to "be careful while clicking selfies and not drive at a high speed".

"I am extremely concerned about the accidents on Signature Bridge. It is Delhi's pride. It is my appeal to all the people, especially the youth, to be careful while clicking selfies on the Signature Bridge and not drive vehicles at a high speed. Your life is precious to the country and for your parents," Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.

A 24-year-old man was killed and his cousin injured on Saturday after the motorcycle they were on skidded and hit a road divider on the Signature Bridge.

A day earlier, two medical students died after their bike skidded on the bridge and they fell off the bridge's edge to their death. The Signature Bridge, over the Yamuna river, is double the height of Qutub Minar and was completed after a delay of over 14 years.

It connects Wazirabad across the river Yamuna to the inner city and reduces travel time between north and north east Delhi.

Offering a panoramic view of the city and boasting many selfie spots, the bridge has quickly turned into a tourist attraction.

Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party chief spokesperson for Delhi Saurabh Bharadwaj blamed the Delhi Police for its inaction in a series of tweets.

"What is the Delhi traffic police doing? Why were no traffic police personnel deployed to check over speeding at the Signature bridge? Is Signature bridge not under their exclusive jurisdiction?" Bharadwaj asked.

He added that since the Delhi government does not have its own police, the central government and Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal were "duty bound to ensure law and order at each corner of Delhi including the Signature Bridge".

"News is published every day about dangerous stunts while taking a selfie. Is it not the duty of the Delhi Police to control such things? Has the Lieutenant- Governor suspended DCP Traffic for failing to deploy traffic police at the Signature bridge?" the AAP MLA further tweeted.