Gurugram, July 15 -- As the summer break ends and schools reopen, students across Gurugram are scrambling to complete their holiday homework-many turning to model-making shops for last-minute solutions. With students under pressure and parents short on time, ready-made models and project files are flying off the shelves-igniting a broader debate about learning, convenience, and commercialisation of school assignments. While parents cite time constraints and technical complexity, educators worry this growing trend is weakening student learning. HT's visit to one such store in Old Gurugram revealed the pressure first-hand: anxious parents negotiated delivery timelines while children stood silently, clutching their homework instructions. In one corner, a father reassured his worried son, "Don't worry; it will be ready soon." Nearby, two schoolgirls waited as a staffer painted their chart. From colourful volcanoes and solar systems to working water purifiers, shops in areas like Old Gurugram, Sector 50 and Shivpuri are packed with anxious parents and students clutching assignment instructions. For children, it's often a blur of paint, glue, and charts; for shopkeepers, it's peak season. "This is our busiest and most profitable time," said Kusum Pahuja, an IIT Delhi alumna and former teacher who now runs a model shop in Sector 50. "We get orders throughout the year, but during the summer holidays, the demand multiplies." The price range-Rs.200 to Rs.2,000 per model-reflects the scale of demand. Shops cater to students from nursery to class 12, offering a range of services including subject-specific models, handwritten project files, and science experiments. "Most orders come from primary and higher classes, especially for science subjects," said Jatin Pahuja, who left a government job at the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram to join his family's shop in Shivpuri. "In the last 15 days of June alone, we got up to 20 orders a day. We even outsource work to college students and subject experts who earn while helping us." "Sometimes, we prepare the models in front of the children so they can see how it's done. They understand it better and can explain it during submission, Jatin said. However, this is not standard practice across such shops, which makes for an imperfect stopgap solution for busy parents facing the pressure of such assignments for children, who may not grasp the project's content but are still expected to present it. Some shop owners argue that these models aid learning, not replace it. "These help students understand topics better. Practical knowledge enhances learning and makes concepts clear," says Vinod Kumar, a former science teacher who has been running a shop in Old Gurugram since 1993. "Besides, many students come at the last minute. We try to keep a range of models ready so they're not left without options." For parents, especially those juggling full-time jobs, these shops offer relief. "My daughter had multiple projects, and I had no time to sit with her. So we bought one model and did the other together," says Renu Saini, a working mother from Sector 6. "There's nothing wrong in this. These models help students prepare more effectively. They're also useful for working parents who can't always offer hands-on help." Ritika Verma, a resident of Sector 9, echoed the sentiment. "Some science-based models require technical know-how. Parents from non-science backgrounds struggle with these," she says. "My daughter had a project on Chandrayaan. We bought it for Rs.750-it was detailed, informative, and saved us a lot of stress." Despite the apparent utility, educators warn that outsourcing homework defeats its educational purpose. "It's unfortunate that such shops exist because they do more harm than good," said Shiva Yadav, principal of RPS International School, Sector 89. "Students become dependent on them, losing out on creativity and independent thinking. That's why, since 2018, we've done away with traditional holiday homework. We assign PowerPoint presentations, tree-planting activities, and visits to local places instead. It's also logistically difficult to store physical models when you have nearly 4,000 students." Aparna Erry, principal of DAV Public School, Sector 14, meanwhile noted that the focus should be on activity-based, student-friendly assignments. "We can usually tell when a project isn't done by the student," she said. "We assign creative tasks like making wall hangings or craft-based models that are comfortable for children and promote collaboration with parents. The written part is strictly done by the student. The idea is to make learning joyful and interactive." Yet, many schools still assign traditional holiday homework involving elaborate models and charts, often with tight deadlines. While some educators label purchase of ready-made projects as academic dishonesty, there is a lack of clear guidance for schools to ensure uniformity in assignment formats or timelines-a major gaps in the discourse, according to parents....