Blue Whale suicide attempt foiled in Bengal

An engineering student was stopped from killing himself in West Bengal after his college authorities alerted the CID about his involvement in the dangerous online game, the Blue Whale Challenge.

A few days ago, the registrar of BB Institute of Technology contacted an officer of the agency about the suspicious behaviour of the student as a result of the deadly game, informed sources at the Criminal Investigation Department West Bengal said on Monday.

The engineering student, a resident of South 24 Parganas district, was found to have reached the eighth level of the Blue Whale Challenge, 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 the player to commit suicide.

The player is also asked to share photos after finishing each challenge.

"You cannot ever come back. You will be compelled to kill yourself if you attempt to play the game. I am very lucky that my college authorities and friends as well as the CID helped me overcome this situation through counselling and guidance," the student said, showing the characteristic blue whale etched on the skin of his left forearm with a blade.

The state CID has been campaigning to generate awareness about the perils of the game.

The sudden popularity of the lethal online game in India had forced the government to issue directions to Internet giants Google, Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram, Microsoft and Yahoo to immediately remove its links.

--IANS

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