The Arunachal Pradesh government has initiated a discussion on banning the hugely popular online game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG).

A letter written by Under Secretary (Home), Habung Lampung addressed to Commissioner (Law and Justice), Secretary (IT & C) and Director General of Police, sought departmental inputs and comments on banning PUBG in the Northeast state.

The letter dated July 26, mentioned that the Governor’s Secretariat had initiated the initial discussion as they wrote to the Home department on July 13 on the issue.

A copy of the letter went viral on the social media with netizens mostly slamming the authorities for the proposed move. “I don’t play this game but I would say it’s utter nonsense to ban this step. I don’t see any harm in playing this game…only the thing is some people are bit addicted to it which is harmless too. I guess their children are totally involved in playing this game to which they couldn’t stand so they have initiated this game. This step seems more like a personal one then for the welfare of the people. There are other severe problems that needs to be taken care of, banning a game is just meaningless,” wrote Pep Gatsby.

pubg order – The News Mill

A few others suggested that the “addictive” game should be banned as it has resulted in waste of valuable time.

Despite the immense popularity of the battle royale game, PUBG has become a subject of controversy, especially in India. There have been cases where students were neglecting studies and are said to be ‘addicted’ to the online game.

Earlier, PUBG Mobile developers had issued a statement following the criticism and the request to ban it in India. The email statement read, “We appreciate the support and trust given to us by our PUBG mobile players. While we strive to deliver the best possible gaming experience to our fans, we also believe that it is extremely important for us to be a responsible member of the gaming ecosystem. To this end, we constantly work and shall continue to work.” Following this, a few features like nudging a player that s/he has given more continuous game time and needs ‘to take a break’ has been introduced.

In India, the game was earlier banned in Gujarat. Often PUBG is being associated with violent behaviour and low academic grades of the students. Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) had also issued an advisory against PUBG. Cities like Rajkot, Ahmadabad, Bhavnagar and Gir Somnath in Gujarat had also banned the game.

Nepal had completely banned PUBG in April this year citing violent content and negative impact on children.

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The News Mill is a Guwahati-based digital media with focus on content from across Northeast India and beyond. We can be reached through [email protected]