Eyewitnesses said the man, aged around 30, could be seen sitting on the railing of the overbridge, holding onto a hoarding, for over an hour, before he jumped on to the tracks below.

“We have found a passport and a train ticket booked for Dehradun from his trousers’ pocket. We have hired a Japanese interpreter from Jawaharlal Nehru University to record his statement and have also written to the Japanese Embassy so that his family members can be traced,” a senior officer said.

The police did not confirm if the passport was of the tourist. The officers said the man was first spotted trying to jump off the bridge around 3.45 pm. Passersby tried to dissuade him, but he kept threatening to jump, even after a PCR van reached the spot. Around 4.15 pm, the fire brigade was called in.

As they couldn’t understand Japanese, fire brigade and police personnel used sign language to persuade him into coming down. He reportedly kept gesturing them to go away.

“The railway traffic also had to be halted for some time. Finally, when one of us managed to reach him, he jumped,” a senior officer said.