How online gaming related challenge prompted three minor sisters to jump from 9th floor

Ghaziabad: The purported suicide of three minor sisters has triggered nationwide concern over online gaming addiction and unsupervised digital exposure among minors.

The sisters, aged 12, 14, and 16, allegedly jumped from the ninth floor of their residential building at around 2 a.m.

Police say they recovered an eight-page handwritten note that referenced an intense attachment to “Korea” and an online game ecosystem that the girls reportedly treated as central to their lives.

Investigators are examining the children’s phones and online histories to determine the exact nature of the digital platforms and games they were involved with. Early findings suggest prolonged involvement in a Korean-themed task-based online game or challenge structure that may have encouraged extreme behavioural patterns and identity immersion.

The incident has reopened debate on how online game cultures, digital fandom communities, and challenge-based platforms affect vulnerable adolescents.

What Police Have Indicated So Far

According to preliminary findings shared by investigators, the sisters had become deeply absorbed in online mobile activities over the past few years, with their digital habits intensifying after the COVID lockdown period.

Their school attendance reportedly dropped, offline social engagement reduced, and daily routines became irregular.

The suicide note allegedly described emotional dependence on a Korean-themed digital environment and difficulty separating from it. Authorities are still verifying whether the platform involved structured “tasks,” social dares, or psychological conditioning elements.

Police have not officially named a specific app or confirmed that a verified self-harm challenge network was operating, but digital forensic analysis is ongoing.

What Are “Korean Task-Based” or Challenge-Driven Online Games?

There is no single officially defined category called “Korean suicide games,” but experts say the phrase is often used loosely to describe:

• Task-driven online challenge communities

• Role-play or identity-based gaming spaces

• Fandom-linked interactive platforms

• Social dares and progression-based challenge groups

• Messaging-app-based private task networks

Some of these environments combine:

• Daily tasks

• Loyalty tests

• Identity role-play

• Peer validation systems

• Reward and punishment structures

Children may be asked to adopt alternate identities, follow behavioural rules, prove commitment, or isolate from “non-members.” Even when not explicitly designed for harm, such systems can create psychological dependency and group pressure.

Digital culture researchers note that K-pop and Korean pop culture fandom spaces are usually harmless, but when mixed with closed challenge groups and anonymous moderators, risks increase.

How Digital Addiction Develops in Children

Mental health professionals say gaming addiction rarely appears suddenly. It usually develops in stages:

Phase 1, Engagement: High screen time begins during boredom or isolation.

Phase 2, Immersion: The child starts preferring online identity over offline life.

Phase 3, Dependence: Mood and behaviour become tied to digital access.

Phase 4, Withdrawal: Irritability, secrecy, and social isolation increase.

“Addiction is not just about hours spent. It is about emotional reliance. When a child feels understood, rewarded, or validated only in a digital space, that space becomes psychologically dominant,” explains Dr. Meetha Kulkarni, child and adolescent psychologist.

Clinical psychologist Dr. Arun Narayan adds, “Challenge-based systems are especially risky for teenagers. Their brains are still developing impulse control. If a platform mixes secrecy, belonging, and achievement, it can override caution.”

Warning Signs Parents Often Miss

Psychologists say parents should watch for:

• Sudden secrecy around phone use

• Night-time screen activity

• Loss of interest in school or hobbies

• Identity shifts or alternate online personas

• Strong emotional reactions when devices are restricted

• Social withdrawal from friends and family

• Shared behavioural patterns among siblings or peer groups

Experts stress that addiction is often hidden behind “normal gaming” until routines collapse.

Why Lockdown Habits Still Matter

During the pandemic, children spent extended hours online for classes and entertainment. Many families relaxed screen rules out of necessity. Behavioural experts say some children never returned to balanced usage patterns.

Dr. Narayan notes, “Lockdown normalised unlimited screen access. For some children, the boundary never came back. That long exposure window changed habits permanently.”

What Parents and Schools Can Do

Experts recommend structured digital supervision rather than blanket bans.

Key steps include:

• Setting fixed device hours

• Keeping phones out of bedrooms at night

• Reviewing apps and online groups regularly

• Using parental control tools

• Encouraging offline routines

• Talking openly about online pressure

• Teaching children how manipulation works online

• Seeking counselling if dependency signs appear

Dr. Kulkarni says, “Monitoring is not spying. It is safeguarding. Children cannot evaluate digital risk the way adults can.”

A Larger Policy Question

Child safety advocates say this incident highlights the need for:

• Stronger age-verification systems

• Reporting mechanisms for harmful challenge groups

• School-level digital literacy programs

• Mandatory platform safety disclosures

• Mental health screening in schools

As the investigation continues, the case is being seen as a warning about the psychological reach of digital ecosystems into young lives and the cost of ignoring early signs of unhealthy dependence.