Watch for drug addiction, curb screen time among students, PM Modi tells teachers

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked teachers to stay alert to signs of drug addiction among students and help them reduce excessive screen time by encouraging sports, physical play and creative activities.

In an interaction with national award-winning teachers on Friday, ahead of Teachers Day, the Prime Minister also urged them to preserve childhood and nurture children’s natural curiosity.

PM Modi said teachers should look beyond marks and pay close attention to children’s behaviour and daily lives. He said their role had become more important as there are now fewer joint family set-ups, and asked them to share creative ways to make classroom learning more engaging.

A video of the interaction at the prime minister’s Lok Kalyan Marg residence was released on Saturday.

Speaking about drug abuse, PM Modi said that in some big cities and universities, it is difficult to tell if anyone is being affected by the problem, as no one knows who gives whom what. “In these circumstances, teachers should take the initiative for awareness and also observe minutely if any change (in behaviour) is witnessed in any child,” he said.

He said teachers should enter the lives of students, going beyond books and syllabuses. “You should not allow the childhood of a student to die. The biggest contribution can be given by the teachers by keeping childhood alive in students’ lives,” he



said.

PM Modi added that children have the same basic nature and curiosity, and if teachers nurture and channelise this curiousity, they can make a significant contribution to their development.

On screen time, the Prime Minister said it had become a major concern among students. He urged teachers to speak to parents about how much time their children spend on screens and whether they continue using mobile phones late at night. He said screen time can be reduced naturally by developing an interest in sports, physical games and creative activities.

Referring to the National Education Policy, he stressed the importance of taking children outside the classroom and connecting them with real-world skills and forms of work.

PM Modi also praised a teacher who spoke about making women in her area aware of breast cancer, and said a breast cancer awareness campaign had been launched by him in Varanasi, his Lok Sabha constituency. “I am happy to share with you that more and more women are coming forward for screening (for breast cancer), even setting a Guinness World Record for it,” he said.

This year, 82 teachers and educators have been selected for the National Teachers Awards from three departments, including 48 teachers from the Department of School Education and Literacy, 21 teachers or faculty members from higher educational institutions and polytechnics, and 13 skill trainers from the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.