Open playgrounds would be a boon for children
Paediatricians fear that many indoor play areas could be breeding grounds for infection and allergies
One of the biggest concerns of urban Indian parents is keeping their children entertained in a safe environment. Every parent dreams of open spaces like a public garden or a park where their children can play. But that’s only a hypothetical proposition given that there is no thought spared for the 0-6 years group of children who constitute 29% of our 1.21 billion population. We don’t have an answer to basic questions like: Where are the parks for the children? Where are the playgrounds? And then, the most urgent question, where is the clean air?
All across the country, the lack of playgrounds -- or their total absence -- has given rise to the mushrooming of indoor air-conditioned play areas, promoted by people whose sole agenda is to make profits. In many of them, safety and sanitary norms are not in place. From Surat to Mumbai, Bengaluru to Chennai, Kolkota to Gurugram, parents are often forced to herd their children into these air-conditioned play areas. The convenience of dropping your child off at such swank places that transport them to an instant wonderland come with a premium fee charged by the hour, and with extra cost for snacks. No doubt, it’s a fancy world where kids zipline, bungee jump, go on a mock veggie shopping expedition, jump on bouncy castle and pretend they are climbing mountains. The flip side, of course, is that most of these urban children will never know the joys of playing in open natural spaces under the sky.
Now play dates and birthday bashes are increasingly held at such venues as every requirement for the event is catered to. Many of these are thriving business propositions across the country.
But behind this glitzy world is the danger waiting to happen. Safety rules are blatantly overlooked in some of these. There are many ambiguities even when it comes to the maximum number of children that play areas should accommodate at a time. This means promoters can host, for example, private parties while simultaneously allowing children -- to pay and play -- with little concern for the venue's capacity limits. This is often the case in many play areas in Millennium City (Gurugram).
Paediatricians fear that many such places could be breeding grounds for infection and allergies. And if children are not supervised by trained staff, they could suffer sports injuries.
For the sake of India’s young population, its time authorities realise the need for formulating rules for running play areas and giving children their childhood back.