The Gujarat government on Tuesday has issued a circular asking its districts to ensure a ban on the online multiplayer game Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds, also called PUBG.
The states primary education department issued a circular after receiving recommendations by the Gujarat State Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
The circular directs District Primary Education Officers to take steps to enforce a ban on the game in primary schools. The circular says that a ban was necessary as children were getting addicted to the game and it was “adversely affecting their studies”.
There is confusion on which version of the game the government is referring to ban, its most likely PUBG Mobile and not the console or PC versions of the PUBG.
Jagruti Pandya, the chairperson of the Gujarat child rights body says National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has recommended a ban on the game across the country.
Earlier this month, PUBG was blamed for poor exam results in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. A student body approached the Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Naik to ban the game immediately. The J&K students body claimed that PUBG Mobile game is extremely addictive and has resulted in poor results for the students in the recent class X and XII board exams.