Kolkata tops world cities' list for Blue Whale search
In what could be astounding revelations, studies have revealed that among 30 cities of the world, Kolkata tops the list when it comes to online searches for the fatal 'Blue Whale' challenge. The city has seen a 100% jump in searches for the "game" in 12 months, according to Google Trends data. In fact, seven Indian cities make the top ten. Here's more.
The Indian cities in the list
Among the top five are Guwahati (4th) and Chennai (5th). Bengaluru (6th), Mumbai (7th), New Delhi (8th) and Howrah (9th) are the other cities in the top ten. San Antonio (US) and Nairobi (Kenya) take the 2nd and 3rd places. Paris (France) comes 10th. Despite these stats, India has consistently stood third with regard to online searches for Blue Whale.
The eastern city seems to be particularly vulnerable
In what was reportedly the second Blue Whale death in India, a Class X student in West Midnapore (WB) killed himself on August 12. Last week, two youths- a Class XI student in Midnapore and an engineering student in Kolkata- were rescued from the trap. Kolkata has consistently topped all analyses of Google trends for durations of one month, three months and one year.
The government wakes up to the danger
After the West Midnapore death, the government asked internet giants like Google, Facebook, Microsoft, WhatsApp, Yahoo and Instagram, to remove all links to the dangerous online challenge. "You are requested to ensure any link of this deadly game in its own name or similar game is immediately removed," the letter from Ministry of Electronics and IT (Meity) said.
