Andhra Pradesh Minister Nara Lokesh has said the state government is considering a ban on social media access for children under 16.
Speaking to Bloomberg in Davos, Lokesh said the government is studying
Australia’s decision to ban children under the age of 16 from accessing social media.
He noted that youngsters below a certain age should not be on such platforms as they do not fully understand the content they are exposed to and that a strong legal framework may be required.
“As a state, we are studying Australia’s under-16 law, and yes, I believe we need to create a strong legal enactment,” he said. Lokesh said he strongly felt that youngsters under a certain age should not be on social media “because they don’t understand what they are seeing.”
Reacting to these remarks, TDP National Spokesperson Deepak Reddy said, “Minister Nara Lokesh ji has rightly highlighted the serious concerns surrounding the impact of social media on the mental health and safety of young children. Children below a certain age are not emotionally mature enough to comprehend the negative and harmful content that is freely available online. That is why the Andhra Pradesh government is studying global best practices and examining Australia’s under-16 social media law.”
He further added, “During the previous YSRCP government, social media was blatantly misused to launch brutal and derogatory attacks against women, including women from political parties, and Andhra Pradesh was among the first states to clamp down hard on such abuse. In the same spirit, the present initiative is aimed at protecting children from toxic content and online negativity. The Telugu Desam Party stands firmly with Minister Lokesh ji in his efforts to safeguard children and promote responsible use of social media.”
