Digital addiction claims 20,000 children’s lives a year, says TMC’s Derek O’Brien; urges govt action

Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien on Friday raised in the Rajya Sabha the issue of growing digital addiction among children and youth, warning that approximately 20,000 children die by suicide every year as a consequence, and demanded that the government address the crisis urgently.

Raising the matter during Zero Hour in the Upper House, O’Brien said studies indicate that children and youth are spending up to eight hours a day on screens and mobile phones — amounting to more than 100 days every year.