Oonch Neech: Children Games That Are Fast Eroding

In today’s day and age outdoor games are fast eroding. The new generation of children spends more time in front of the computers or television rather than play outside. It is quite alarming as physical activities of the children have reduced and so have their stamina and immunity. Children in the good old days were robust one of the reason was the amount of outdoor activity that was part of their lives. There were an array of simple yet fun filled games, like hopscotch, skipping the rope, marbles and many more. One such game was Oonch Neech or up and down. It is a rural game played by children in India and Pakistan. It was widely played by children all over India and known in different states by different names. Like in the North it is known as Oonch Neech while in Andhra Pradesh it is known as Nela Banda.

This game typically requires four or more participants. It is played in a place where there is a higher ground and a lower ground. Like for instance steps can be used to play the game. Basically there is one person who is essentially the catcher. The catcher will either choose "Oonch" which means higher ground or "Neech" which means lower ground. Once he chooses up he cannot step down and at the same time he cannot let the others step on his area. If someone tries to get into his area, and if the catcher manages to capture the person, than that person becomes the catcher in the next game.

By: Madhuchanda Saxena

Content: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oonch_Neech