A 19-year-old college student Vignesh in Madurai is suspected to be the first victim in Tamil Nadu of the macabre online game Blue Whale.
Police found the image of a whale carved on Vignesh's left hand with "Blue Whale" written below it. The 'Blue Whale' game has been blamed for at least three more suicides this month, in Mumbai, Uttar Pradesh and Kerala.
Meanwhile, the Chennai police have been put on high alert and parents have been asked to monitor online activities of their children.
In an advisory issued on Monday, the police noted the propensity of the game to instigate suicide and self-inflicted injuries.
It asked parents to prevent children from becoming potential victims of the harmful game. They have also been asked to watch out for signs of concerns in children, that may indicate their involvement in the game, such as "abnormal activity, depressed and violent behaviour, long lonely online hours, late night surfing, avoiding company of family members, concealing one’s online activity and unusual injuries on the body."
The online game, reportedly linked to a couple of deaths in the country, allegedly encourages participants to do several dangerous tasks, including carving picture of a whale onto their arms or legs and climbing up the roof, crane etc.
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