US EditionIndia should consider age-based limits for social media access, economic adviser says
India’s adviser urges government to consider age verification and promote offline activities to reduce digital addiction among youth, who comprise 75% of social media users, the survey said.
- On Jan 29, India's chief economic adviser recommended age-based limits on social media in the Economic Survey 2025-26, citing concerns over 'digital addiction'.
- Amid recent years, Nageswaran noted digital addiction harms youth, driven by India’s 750 million devices and 1 billion internet users, as he said, `'Digital addiction negatively affects academic performance and workplace productivity due to distractions, sleep debt, and reduced focus.'`
- He urged families in India to adopt screen-time limits, device-free hours and shared offline activities, while social media platforms should enforce age verification, age-appropriate defaults, simpler devices and content filters.
- The recommendations are non-binding but may influence policy, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration typically considers them, while Andhra Pradesh and Goa recently study Australia's framework.
- Internationally, France and others are moving on age limits; Australia last year blocked over a million under-16 accounts, and the adviser recommended India could shake up Meta and Alphabet in its biggest market.
20 Articles
20 Articles
Economic Survey calls for social media age limit: How this will this tackle digital addiction
If the government were to act on the Economic Survey’s recommendation, it would add India to a growing list of countries which are considering measures to tackle children’s exposure to social media content, which can be harmful for them
Firstpost News
India should consider age-based limits for social media, chief economic adviser says
India's chief economic adviser, V Anantha Nageswaran, made the call in country's annual economic survey and recommended families promote screen-time limits, device-free hours and shared offline activities.
India should consider age-based limits for social media access, economic adviser says
NEW DELHI, Jan 29 (Reuters) – India’s annual economic survey presented on Thursday recommended age-based limits to be considered for access to social media and gambling apps to counter what it called “digital addiction” in the country. (Reporting by Manoj Kumar and Aditi Shah, writing by Hritam Mukherjee; Editing by YP Rajesh)
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