The growing reliance on Smart Phones during the COVID -19 Pandemic: A Case Study from Haldia in Purba Medinipur District, W.B.

AUTHOR
Suman Kalyan Samanta *
Rajashree Sau **
Suravi Dutta Roy ***

KEYWORDS
Smartphone, COVID -19 Pandemic, Lockdown, Mobile devices.

ABSTRACT
The COVID -19 pandemic has had a major impact on people's lifestyles, activities, occupations, etc. One of these is the significant increase in the frequency and duration of use of mobile phones and other electronic devices. The lives of young people, especially students and professionals of different sectors are increasingly influenced by new technological devices, especially smartphones. Needless to say, smartphones have been saviours during this emergency situation. Mobile devices and smartphones have become an integral part of the lives of students and professionals to sustain their studies and careers during the COVID -19 lockdown when they had to continue their studies and work from home. This study is the outcome of a local field study using personal interviews and case study methods. It was conducted mainly among students pursuing higher education and professional courses; and professionals of different sectors in the age group of 20-49 years residing in Haldia municipality and surrounding areas.