Parents in Chandigarh want PUBG banned

Deepankar Sharda
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, July 6

After several cases of teenagers losing money by making purchases of virtual items in PUBG, parents are now demanding a ban on the game.

Reports suggested that at a single time over one lakh users play the game in India. The game is available on different modes — mobile, PlayStation and computer.

“This is a serious concern and the government should either ban or put restrictions on it. My 10-year-old daughter used to play but after coming to know about a few cases, I have uninstalled it,” said Prabhat Sharma, a Mohali resident.

“We have to think beyond blaming the children. The parents should also take the responsibility and stop their children from using such platforms,” said Jyoti Pandey, another resident.

PUBG may put restrictions

Hari Chand Arora, a lawyer of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, had filed a PIL for banning the game. He said the process was under examination by the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology as directed by the court.

According to him, PUBG operators have recently submitted that they would restrict gaming hours and seek consent of parents. The submission was made to the ministry. However, Arora said he wants a complete ban on the game.

“The platform, PUBG, has offered to put restriction on the game, including one-hour break after every two-hour session, parents’ consent through an OTP after every session and five-hour maximum limit in a day,” said Arora.

He added: “However, this will not solve the purpose. This platform is duping teenagers by selling ‘virtual’ weapons that are of no use. We are going to demand a complete ban on the game.”

On December 9, 2019, the court had directed the Centre to take a decision on banning the game and the outcome is likely before the end of the month.

“I have submitted the recent reports of The Tribune in this regard. They were acknowledged by the ministry and PUBG operators,” added Arora.

“The company has been many facing cases in cities such as Mumbai and Gujarat and the government needs to take necessary steps,” said advocate VK Sachdeva.