Davos: The Andhra Pradesh government is mulling a ban on social media platforms for children under 16. State Minister Nara Lokesh, while speaking to Bloomberg in Switzerland's Davos, revealed his government's plan regarding enacting a lega framework in this regard.
Lokesh said that his government is studying Australia's under-16 law, and he believes that there should be a strong legal framework to prevent children under 16 years from using social media.
The Andhra Pradesh Minister also reportedly told the media house that he strongly feels that youngsters under a certain age should not use social media, as they do not understand the content they are seeing.
If the law regarding the social media ban comes into force, then Andhra Pradesh would become the first Indian state to do so.
Lokesh also stated that teh Centre has not yet expressed any opinion regarding framing such laws.
Reacting to Lokesh's Statement, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) National Spokesperson Deepak Reddy said the minister had highlighted the serious concerns surrounding the impact of social media on the mental health and safety of young children.
"Andhra Pradesh government is studying global best practices and examining Australia’s under-16 social media law," he added.
Australia Bans Social Media For Children Under 16:
Last month, Australia became the world's first country to ban 10 social media platforms, including Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and X, for children under 16.
In a video message to students around Australia, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that the government has made the change to support children who have grown up with algorithms, endless social media feeds and the pressure they bring.
He also encouraged students to make the most of the upcoming school holidays rather than spending all their time scrolling on their phones.
"Start a new sport, learn a new instrument, or read that book that has been sitting there on your shelf for some time," Albanese said.
The Australian federal parliament passed the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024 in November 2024, requiring certain social media platforms to take "reasonable steps" to prevent children under 16 from having accounts, Xinhua news agency reported.
Platforms that fail to comply face fines worth up to 49.5 million Australian dollars (about $32.8 million). There are no penalties for under-16s who access an age-restricted social media platform, or for their parents or carers.
