The Centre is actively consulting stakeholders on potential safeguards for children on social media platforms, including a proposal to restrict access for users under 16, Electronics and Information Technology Secretary S. Krishnan said on 19 July. No final decision has been taken, but the deliberations signal the government's growing intent to act on digital child safety.

What the Government Said

Krishnan confirmed that India is carefully studying legislative steps taken by other countries before charting its own course. 'We need to study what other countries have done with social media. It is a matter of global concern,' he said. He added that concerns around social media risks have surfaced repeatedly in India's bilateral discussions with the European Union and other nations, and that Parliamentary Standing Committees have also flagged the issue domestically.

'In our discussions with the EU and other countries, concerns around the risks of social media have come up repeatedly. In India too, various stakeholders, including Parliamentary Standing Committees, have discussed these risks,' Krishnan noted. He emphasised that the process remains consultative: 'We're in the process of discussing this with various stakeholders.'

Modi's Australia Signal

The consultations follow a notable public endorsement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of Australia's landmark legislation banning children under 16 from social media. During his recent visit to Australia's annual leaders' summit, Modi told Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese that Australia's legislative efforts to regulate IT and social media are 'inspiring the world' and that India is 'learning a lot' from the move. The remarks were widely read as a strong signal that similar restrictions are under active consideration in India.

The Global Context

Australia became the first country to enact a nationwide under-16 social media ban, requiring major platforms — including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and X — to deploy age-verification mechanisms. Under the Australian law, penalties for non-compliance fall on the platforms, not on children or parents. Several European nations are separately examining stricter parental consent and age-verification frameworks.

The debate is also intensifying in the United States, where major technology companies, particularly Meta, face escalating scrutiny over addictive algorithmic design, age-verification failures, cyberbullying, and exposure of minors to inappropriate content. This comes amid a broader global reckoning with the mental health impact of social media on adolescents.

Broader Digital Safety Agenda

The under-16 access question is expected to feed into India's wider digital safety framework, which encompasses online harms legislation, intermediary accountability norms, and emerging regulations around artificial intelligence. The Centre's multi-stakeholder consultation model suggests a measured, evidence-driven approach rather than an immediate legislative push — though the political direction, underscored by Modi's public remarks in Australia, appears increasingly clear.

How India ultimately frames its rules — and whether it places compliance obligations on platforms, parents, or both — will shape the contours of the country's digital governance for the next generation.