The Delhi High Court on Wednesday asked the Centre to take a decision on a representation that seeks a national policy to protect children from online games addiction.
A Bench of Chief Justice D.N. Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh asked the authorities concerned to decide, in accordance with the law, rules, regulations and government policy applicable to the case.
Distress Management Collective (DMC), a non-governmental organisation, in its petition filed through advocates Robin Raju and Deepa Joseph, said it has been receiving numerous complaints from parents who are concerned about children getting addicted to online games, as a result of which the kids are developing various psychological problems.
The petition said some recent news of children committing suicide or going into depression, and also committing crimes like theft due to online game addiction, compelled the NGO to file the petition.
“The pandemic period has posed a major problem in controlling and monitoring children from excessive gadget use. As classes are now online, parents are not in a position to reprimand children for being with a mobile phone like they did in the past. There are numerous studies that show the adverse impact of online games on the psyche of both young children (6-10 years) and adolescents (11-19 years),” the NGO said.
The NGO said there was a need for schools to give emphasis to counselling sessions and periodic sessions regarding the impact of gaming addiction. It also called for a national policy that laid emphasis on the role of schools and the Cyber Cell in tackling the issue.
