PUBG addiction claims life: 16-year-old in Madhya Pradesh reportedly suffers Cardiac Arrest while playing PUBG

In what could be a shocking incident, a 16-year-old class XII student from Rajasthan's Nasirabad area reportedly died while playing PUBG at his ancestral place in Madhya Pradesh’s Neemuch district. Well, here’s what happened.

As per reports, 16-year-old Furqan Qureshi died while playing PUBG on his mobile phone continuously for 6 hours straight. Furqan was rushed to a hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

The incident happened on the evening of May 26, Sunday. While the exact cause of Furqan’s death remains unknown, doctors suspect he may have suffered a massive cardiac arrest due to “sudden but deep shock” while playing the game.

“The sudden burst of excitement or fear of loss just like what happens to die-hard fans watching a nail-biting soccer match could have caused deep shock leading to the cardiac arrest, which ultimately led to the death,” Neemuch-based cardiologist Dr Ashok Jain told The New Indian Express.

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Eldest among three children, Furqan was highly addicted to PUBG and he often used to play PUBG continuously for hours, despite his parents trying to stop him from doing the same. His father has now demanded a ban on PUBG game.

This is clearly not the first time we have seen PUBG addiction causing serious trouble to the player’s physical and mental well-being. Last month, a Class IX student from Telangana committed suicide after his parents scolded him for playing PUBG Mobile.

In February, an 18-year-old in Mumbai committed suicide after his parents refused to buy him a new mobile phone to play the game. Sadly, this is the extent to which the addiction to the game has now reached.

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In India, parents often seem concerned about their children's addiction to mobile gaming and there have also been some cases of aggression among PUBG players who tend to get violent and reckless at times. Earlier, the government of issued a directive to ban students from playing PUBG in schools.

The World Health Organization (WHO) now also considers addiction to online mobile games like PUBG and Fortnite as a mental health disorder.