Mobile phone and online gaming addiction has become a serious problem for children and youth. The very technology that was once considered a powerful medium for education and information has now turned into a threat to the mental and physical health of children. After games like PUBG and Blue Whale, Korean online games are now claiming the lives of children and young people. Excessive use of mobile phones and gaming is having a deep negative impact on children’s behavior, thinking, and cultural values. The situation has reached such a level that children, teenagers, and young adults are taking extreme steps like suicide, with gaming addiction often being the root cause. Experts are calling this addiction “sweet poison” and warning society to protect children.
The tragic incident in a Ghaziabad housing society, where three sisters—Nishika, Prachi, and Pakhi—addicted to online gaming jumped from the ninth floor and lost their lives, is shocking and serves as a serious warning. It tells us clearly that children must not be allowed to develop addiction to online gaming or mobile phones. I also strongly believe that such unnatural deaths of young people should never happen. Earlier, an engineer named Yuvraj lost his life after falling into a pothole in Noida, and recently, a bank manager died a painful death after falling into a pothole in Janakpuri. Such incidents should not occur, and state governments and administrative authorities must ensure safety and accountability.
The three sisters were obsessed with a Korean game—why it became more precious to them than their own lives is revealed in their eight-page suicide note. During the COVID period (2019–20), children were already addicted to mobile phones. Gradually, these three sisters began spending all their time—awake and asleep—playing a Korean online game on a single mobile phone. Their growing obsession pushed them into a state of mental imbalance, and they began identifying themselves as Korean. Experts explain that when children perform tasks in gaming apps, they start imagining themselves as the characters or roles assigned in the game. A belief that they are experts, that no one can beat them, and that only they can win becomes deeply ingrained—sometimes to the point of madness. While such emotional dependence cannot be justified, the changes taking place in children’s behavior must be taken seriously and addressed with alertness.
Those three girls are gone, but even today, children from ordinary as well as affluent families—brothers and sisters alike—are addicted to hundreds of online games. Parents must not only keep an eye on them but also adopt a concrete and loving approach to counsel and guide them. Today, children see gaming as a form of entertainment technology, but they are unknowingly moving toward addiction, the consequences of which are extremely dangerous. Although the suicide note explains the reasons behind the children’s actions, parents must still explore alternative ways to control online gaming. I am sharing these thoughts based on what people are circulating and discussing on social media.
Online gaming methods are designed to create addiction in children. They are lured with continuous tasks, rewards, and incentives to become “winners,” and are often compared to Korean stars, sometimes to attractive French youth or fair-skinned British children. This fantasy world may seem appealing to children, but the desire to become like these figures becomes uncontrollable. Earlier, when I mentioned several incidents related to online gaming and reel-making accidents involving children, I feared that things might worsen—and sadly, that fear is becoming reality. It is painful to admit that we are still unable to find a concrete solution.
I remember a time when we read the Ramayana and the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, and during the 1980s, when television serials like Ramayan and Mahabharat were broadcast, we learned values and life lessons from the stories of divine deeds, which later shaped our moral character. Comics inspired by these epics were also created and were equally meaningful. We never imagined that this era would pass so quickly and that technology would advance at such a rapid pace. Now that technology has arrived, the new generation considers it their right—but we must also establish proper ways to use and control it.
I often speak with experts, and many people seek my opinion. My consistent view is that online gaming addiction alters children’s mental framework. Emotionally, they retreat into a different world where all their happiness comes from gaming. Their eating habits, sleep, studies—everything deteriorates. Even their conversations revolve around online games. The time has come for everyone to act collectively. Children belong to all of us, and they are the future of the nation. Therefore, decisive steps must be taken so that tragedies like the Ghaziabad incident never happen again.
