Jamshedpur Summer Camps Combat Mobile Addiction, Boost Child Development

Jamshedpur: Residents of the Steel City termed summer camps a welcome break for their children, many of whom are addicted to mobile phones. At present, over 200 summer camps are being organised across the city. Out of this, many are being held by govt-run schools, which are witnessing good footfall.A mother of a 14-year-old girl, Sonia Sharma, said, “Acting on daughter’s teacher’s advice, I got my daughter enrolled in a summer camp to keep her away from mobile phones and tablets. At summer camps, my daughter can socialise with children of her age group outside school hours, besides learning games and handicrafts.”A resident of Bistupur, Sonia, said, “Till last year, my daughter used to remain glued to mobile phones or tablets for hours during the month-long summer vacations. This summer, she gets up early in the morning to go for a swim organised by the camp. Activities like yoga, dance, archery, and karate, which are part of the camp, are showing positive effects on my daughter’s health. She is sleeping better and has regained her lost appetite.”Sonari resident Rahul Sachdeva said, “Earlier, my 15-year-old school-going daughter’s screen time used to extend beyond six hours on a daily basis. Acting on a child counsellor’s advise to get her enrolled in a summer camp. I put her in the summer camp organised by her school. My girl’s screen time has reduced by one third over the past two weeks. As a father, who was worried about my child’s health and future, I am today overjoyed.”Former faculty member of AIIMS-Delhi, Dr Asha Sinha, said, “Parents must keep their kids engaged in different activities so that they are away from screens. Outdoor games are very important for the holistic development of a child.”“As many as 390 million children across the world in the age group of 5-15 years are suffering from obesity. The main reason behind this is eating junk food, not involved in any outdoor games and spending hours in front of screens,” she added, citing a WHO study conducted in 2025.Meanwhile, specialised summer camps for knowledge enhancement are also being organised for kids. Loyola School conducted a five-day camp on robotics and electronics. School principal Vinod Fernandes said, “The initiative reflected Loyola School’s commitment to providing students with experiential learning opportunities and preparing them for the rapidly evolving world of science, technology, innovation and future-ready skills.”Corporate houses have also come forward to organise summer camps for children in the city.