India orders ban on Blue Whale suicide game

The Indian Government has directed internet majors - Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Microsoft and Yahoo - to immediately remove the links of dangerous online game Blue Whale Challenge, which has led to suicide of children in India and other countries.
"Instances of children committing suicide while Blue Whale Challenge have been reported in India...You are hereby requested to ensure that any such link of this deadly game in its own name or similar game is immediately removed from your platform," Ministry of Electronics and IT(Meity) said in a letter dated August 11 to the internet majors.
The letter was issued following instructions from Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, an official source said.
The Blue Whale challenge is reportedly a suicide game in which the player is given certain tasks to complete for a period of 50 days and the final task leads to suicide. The player is also asked to share photos after finishing the challenge.
Expressing concern on availability of such deadly game on internet, Meity said, "it is understood that an administrator of the game uses social media platform to invite /incite children to play this game, which may eventually lead them to take extreme steps for self inflicting injuries including suicide".
Kerala woman says Blue Whale killed son
Meanwhile, the Kerala Police have begun investigations into the death of a 16-year-old boy here after his family raised doubts that it was due to the Blue Whale Challenge game.
The school student from Vilapilasala near here allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself at his house on July 26.
The boys mother told a Malayalam TV channel that her son had downloaded the game in November last.
"He said in the last stage of the game, one should either commit suicide or murder someone. I got scared after hearing it and asked my son not to play the game," she said.
She said the boy had once hurt himself using a compass and jumped into a river though he did not know how to swim. He was later rescued.
Before he took the extreme step, my son had deleted the game from his mobile phone, the woman added.
The statements of the family have been recorded and investigations are on, police said.
The Centre has directed internet majors - Google, Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram, Microsoft and Yahoo - to immediately remove links of the dangerous online game, which has reportedly led to suicide of children in India and other countries.

Kerala CM writes to PM to ban Blue Whale game

On August 12, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had urged the Centre to take immediate steps to ban the Blue Whale Challenge in the country "to save precious lives".
"In view of the threat which is already at our doorstep, I would request that immediate action may be initiated to ban this game all over India so that we can save precious lives," Vijayan said in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a copy of which was released to the media.
"This is not a video game, but the participants are required to receive instructions from an anonymous administrator and their final task is to commit suicide," Vijayan said in the letter.
Media reports reveal that the game has taken a few lives in India and its popularity was growing, he said.
The cyber wing of the police department in Kerala is striving to make people aware about the game through social media and other effective channels, he said. He said the state government by itself can do very little in the matter.
The issue had been raised in the state Assembly also and the chief minister had assured the members that the state police had already issued necessary alerts to make parents vigilant about the game and ensure that children do not get addicted.

There were reports that a 14-year-old boy recently ended his life in Mumbai due to the influence of Blue Whale game, the chief minister had said in the assembly.

• India